Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2014
by KatrinaSebastian
Summary: After seeing the new TMNT movie, I had to do a story on this. April O'Neil asks four young sisters to help her out with a news story. Little did they know that meeting four mutant ninja turtles would only be the beginning of their new adventures with their new friends. Perhaps maybe find love. Based off the 2014 TMNT movie. Leo/OC, Raph/OC, Donnie/OC, Mikey/OC, April/Vern
1. News

**Author's Note: Hi guys! I haven't done a TMNT story in a long time! I've been trying to get back into it, but since the new TMNT movie came out this weekend, I've had to see it, and I enjoyed it very much. I had to write a story based on that, despite the fact that Michael Bay produced it. Overall, I loved the movie and thought of how much more there should be if there were some female counterparts to the turtles :D**

Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. They are the property to their owners. I only own my OCs.

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New York City; the Big Apple; the City that never sleeps. Anyway you look at it, New York City is always busy, no matter what you call it. The streets booming with lively people; blaring noises of traffic and rude drivers stormed the suffocating streets of downtown Brooklyn. Riding her bicycle, April O'Neil easily maneuvered through the craziness with ease, her long reddish-brown hair flowing through the wind; yellow jacket clinging to her upper body. She had to tell them! She had to tell the girls the good news! She was on the biggest break of her life; all these years working at Channel 6 news station, she had finally gotten a big break on her story with the Foot Clan. Hopefully, the girls would be able to help out with her story.

She rode her bike faster, dodging the traffic with ease and riding up to the small hair salon. She hopped off the bike, and walked up to the salon; locking her bike up and almost running inside. She was so happy, she couldn't wait to tell her friends the good news. She opened the door, the bell ringing as she walked into the salon, smiling and giggling like a school girl as she came up to the front desk.

"Hi Danielle!" April greeted cheerfully, her smile beaming at the young girl behind the desk.

Danielle was a seventeen year old high school student, who helped work at her aunt's hair salon after hours a few times a week. She had long brown hair with her layered bangs swept over to the left side of her face, covering most of her forehead. She wore little makeup, mainly eye liner and mascara, highlighting her unusual teal eyes that sparkled brightly behind her large geeky glasses. Her ivory skin seemed to glow slightly in the florescent lighting; her slim body seemed bony in certain areas, but that was how her metabolism worked. She was the tallest of the four girls who worked after school, at five foot nine inches. A favorite hobby that she loved with a passion - playing the violin. Her blue jeans were slim, sporting a light lilac t-shirt, and black flats garnishing her feet.

"Hi, April. What can I do for you?" Danielle asked as she looked up from her laptop behind the counter, pushing up her glasses from falling off her nose. Being the smartest of the girls, she was also the quietest. Danielle never really wanted anything more than her scholarship at the local science museum in downtown Manhattan. After working hard all these years with extra credit, attending ever science fair since she was four, she was on her way to her dream. She was never good at sports, but she loved anything that had to do with technology. There was something off about Danielle lately, but April thought it was due to working so hard in school and helping run the hair salon.

"Are your sisters here? I've got some awesome news that I want to tell them!" April beamed, bouncing up and down in front of her like a little child in a candy store.

"Sure, hold on one moment." Danielle smiled, rising from her seat, and walking over to where her two sisters were chit chatting.

April took out her phone, looking through the contents to make sure she had everything to show the girls. This was her big break, and she couldn't have done it without her friends.

Danielle returned a minute later with two other girls. Lauren was lithe in body figure, and flawless in beauty. She had long, straight black hair that ran about halfway down her back; light almond skin; bright blue eyes that glowed in the light. She was always calm and collected. Lauren never needed to tell anyone how to do things twice. She was in command, if you want to put it bluntly. Lauren was the oldest, even though she was seventeen, standing at five foot seven inches. The girl wasn't that much shorter than Danielle. She played sports: soccer, gymnastics, softball, volleyball; the girl was the "beauty queen", as many of their classmates would call her. She was the popular girl, but she wasn't interested in any guy. She always had school, athletics and family come first before anything else. Once in a while, she would be reckless and miss a day or two of school just to play hookie with her sisters. But that was on a rare occasion.

"Hey, April. What's new?" Lauren asked, sliding up to the desk and leaning with one elbow on the counter top. She wore a light blue t-shirt with a yin-yang symbol on the front; khakis and converse sneakers. Rachel and Lauren were training to become hair stylists like their aunt. All of their hard work would pay off at the end of the semester.

"Ape, my girl! Where you been?" Rachel asked, hugging her friend tightly. Rachel was the second oldest, also seventeen as well and standing at five foot eight inches. She had her hair mostly chestnut brown with bright blonde hair running halfway through her hair at the bottom. Rachel wore a variety of colors: black and bright neon pink t-shirt with white skulls floating across the fabric; faded blue jeans with holes in her knees and wearing steel gray boots. If she had her way, she would sport black and pink highlights in her hair. Rachel was known to get into an occasional fight every month, at least one or two fights. Mainly it was to defend Danielle. The poor girl had a rough few months, and no one messed with her sisters, despite what happened. Although Rachel was a straight A student like her sisters, she would skip school just to get out and have fun for the day. Her light green eyes darted around the salon, highlighted by the bright pink and black eye makeup.

"Working, unlike you Rach. Where's Eri?" April asked, hugging her friend and sticking her tongue out.

"Oh, April! I have goodies for you!" Erica sang as she walked through the door with a box full of creme filled churros. Erica was the youngest of the four girls, sixteen about to turn seventeen in a few months. Erica, standing at five foot five inches, had long blonde hair that turned pink halfway down to the end of her roots. Erica was born with strawberry blonde hair, no one knew why; she was considered the "freak" of the four. Her bright honey brown eyes glowed; sun kissed skin shown a little sweat; wearing a thin strapped orange tank top and light blue shorts with a set of swim shorts underneath that dangled at the thighs. Sporting flip flops, sunglasses hanging off her beaded necklace, she was the surfer girl. Her backpack had a skateboard strapped on it, her transportation around the city beside her bike and roller blades. Her left arm had a henna design of lilies and waves, since she was too young to get a tattoo, it would suffice for now. Eri loved to skateboard, as well as paint. She had a scholarship waiting for her at Juliard; being the most creative of the four, she loved working at her aunt's salon as well as coloring her clients hair with different shades of vibrant colors.

"Eri! What did I tell you about sweets after school?" Lauren asked, noticing the box of churros that she was holding.

"Oh, come on, Lauren! I've been good about not having my babies for a while." Erica smiled, as she set her box down to hug April, and opened the lid to her delicious churros.

"Yeah, for like a week." Rachel snorted as she glared at her younger sister

"Actually, it's been a month and two weeks since she had a churro." Danielle corrected, pushing her glasses up onto the bridge of her nose.

"Thank you! I rest my case. Oh, hello babies. Did you miss me? Momma missed you too." Erica said as she grabbed a churro and caressed it before eating it.

"Anyway, you guys ready for what I gotta say? April asked as the four sisters looked at her with smiles on their faces.

"Okay, so you know about the Foot clan right? Well, last night, I witnessed a robbery down at the docks. I saw ... someone, like a man, fighting back against the clan. I couldn't get a clear shot of him, but this is what I got." April explained as she dug through her purse to get her phone out, scrolling through the contents to find the picture and show the girls what she got.

Lauren looked at the photo, trying to decipher what it could be. All she saw was a shadow, a bulky shadow, wielding two weapons in its hands while standing above a large containment unit.

"I know, it was dark outside last night. But, I'm telling you, there is a vigilante out there, and he's fighting back against this Foot clan." April said as each of the girls looked at the photo, trying to come up with a clear explanation.

"That's awesome, but how is Thompson going to handle it?" Rachel asked as she looked at April.

"Well . . . " April stuttered, trying to come up with some excuse.

"She didn't believe you, did she?" Danielle asked, knowing the answer to the question.

"No." April answered defeated, her head going down

"Don't worry, April. I'm sure something will come up for you. Want a churro?" Erica said, holding a churro up for April, who smiled and took it out of her hand.

"Oh God, these are amazing!" April said as she took a bite of one, and began eating it really quickly, enjoying the sweet sugary taste of the churro.

"Ha! Eat it, Rach! Told you that April would eat one!" Erica yelled as she got in Rachel's face, doing a small happy dance before she got whacked in the head by her older sister.

"Children, enough. So, what are you going to do, April? Obviously, Thompson doesn't believe you." Lauren said, getting in between Rachel ad Erica while looking at April.

"I don't know, Lauren. All I know is I need more concrete evidence to maybe convince her. But, you know how hard it is to get her attention on a huge story without any solid evidence." April answered, finishing her churro and looking at her phone, hoping she can get more evidence on this vigilante.

"Why don't we help you out?" Danielle asked, hoping that she could help her friend.

"Are you nuts?! Shimizu-sensei would kill us if we stayed out later than 11!" Lauren yelled, looking at her sister like she was crazy.

"What? We've done it before. Plus, it's technically spring break. We can stay out as late as we want." Erica answered, grabbing her headphones from her backpack and placing them over her ears before turning on her music from her phone.

"Besides, it ain't the first time we've been out later than our curfew, and we're almost done with school, considering we've doubled up on our classes since freshman year." Rachel butted in, looking around the salon before setting her gaze back on her older sister.

"Come on, Lauren, please? I really need your help with this. I'm sure your sensei would understand if I talked to her about it." April begged, looking desperate for an answer.

"I don't know, April. If we do this, what's in it for us?" Lauren asked, looking at April with doubt in her eyes.

"I'll have Vern drive you guys in the work van to school for the rest of the school year. And - and he'll get you guys breakfast and lunch on top of that." April begged, hoping they would say yes.

"Hmm. I say let's do it, Lauren." Erica said, cramming another churro into her mouth.

"I'm totally in." Rachel said, fist pumping Erica and eating a churro from the box.

"It's a little dangerous to do it at night, but I say let's go for it." Danielle smiled, adjusting her glasses up on her nose bridge again.

Lauren looked at her younger sisters, then looked back at April, whose large green eyes silently begged and pleaded to help her out.

"Alright, we'll help you out. But, you better let Shimizu-sensei know about this." Lauren answered, hanging her head in defeat.

April jumped up and down in glee, hugging her friend and clapping her hands together.

"You guys are awesome!"

"So, when do we start our snooping around?" Rachel asked, an evil smirk appearing on her face.

"Tonight." April said, smiling as she grabbed another churro.

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**Author's Note: Yes! I've finally got the first chapter up! It's been so long since I've written a fanfiction story, let alone a TMNT story. I know I've got some stories that I need to update, but after seeing the new TMNT movie that came out a few weeks ago, I had to do a story on it! I love the new designs and how it came together. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy it. I'll be updating as soon as possible with this story :D **

**Author's Edit 8/18/2014: So, after reading the few reviews that I've gotten already, which I'm very happy about. I realized that I needed to make the girls more normal instead of identical versions of the turtles. So, the more chapters I put up, the more you'll see their personalities come to life. It will be a mix of the guys' personalities as well as some of their own personalities. I thank those who helped me look over my chapter to make them more realistic. **


	2. Investigate

**Author's Note: Hey guys, I'm glad to be back into writing again! Within 24 hours, I've already gotten a few reviews on this. So, I know for a fact that this is one story I have to keep on updating as much as possible. Since I'm on vacation this week, do expect to have some more updates frequently. I've updated the first chapter to give my characters more of their own personalities. Hopefully, we get to see the guys come into play soon. As many of you know, this is more based off the 2014 TMNT movie since I love the designs. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. I only own my OCs. **

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Night had fallen in downtown Brooklyn, the small shops quieting down one by one. The hair salon boomed until nine, which was closing time. Lauren and her sisters worked hard with their aunt to help out with her business, taking care of clients and appointments for everyone as best as they could. Being high school students was a job in itself, considering that all four doubled up on classes since freshman year. Their aunt, Madame Blossom, was a well known hair stylist throughout New York. She had done hair from Katy Perry and Beyonce to Peter Gabriel and Elton John when he visited the United States. She left her due to business that was needed in uptown Manhattan. Lately, their aunt had been acting strange, but it was probably due to the increasing crime rate within the city.

"Alright, girls. Time to close up shop." Lauren announced as she shut down her station and cleaned the chair from the remains of cut hair all over her station. Rachel swept the floor, the tiles shining like brand new again. Danielle counted the last of the records for accounting purposes. Erica shut the lights off and locked the doors before turning the open sign in the window off.

"Well, I guess that's the last of it." Danielle smiled, grabbing her messenger bag and holstering it on her shoulder.

"Another day, another dollar." Rachel sighed, grabbing her backpack and heading for the door.

"Amen. Thank God, it's Friday night." Erica agreed, her backpack on her shoulder and skateboard underneath her left arm. All the girls went out the front door, waiting for Lauren to come out with her stuff. Lauren emerged from the salon, turning around to lock the door officially before smiling and stretching her arms out.

"Sweet! We are done for the weekend!" Lauren smiled, high fives to each of her sisters as they walked away from the shop and down the road. Each of the shops were closed and bared, which was abnormal for a Friday night. Normally, the downtown section of Brooklyn was booming with night time shoppers and young couples strolling the nightlife. But for some reason, no one was hardly out anymore. The girls had no idea what would be in store for the on this night.

The cool night air was a bit chilly on this Friday night. The girls huddled closer to one another, hoping the warmth from each other would keep them warm until they were home. Rachel grabbed her cell phone out, and dialed their sensei's number. But no one answered, and that set the second oldest sister off.

"Hey guys, I can't get a hold of Shimizu-sensei." Rachel frowned, looking at her phone like this was a practical joke.

"That's odd. She normally answers within the first two rings." Lauren looked perplexed, wondering what was going on.

"I hope everything is alright." Danielle shivered, wrapping her fleece zip up jacket closer to her.

"How much you wanna bet she's taking a cat nap again? She's known to do that at this time of night." Erica asked, looking at her sisters before brushing her hair back from her face.

"She never takes a nap unless we're home." Lauren answered, looking around the neighborhood, in case someone was watching them.

"Hey guys! What are you doing out this late at night?" a male voice yelled as the four sisters looked to see Vern Fenwick and April in their Channel 6 work van. Vern was probably in his mid 30s, light brown hair and light skinned. He was April's camera man and new boyfriend, although they just started dating secretly so their boss, Bernadette Thompson, wouldn't know of their status. It was not professional for couples to work together in the same news crew or some bullshit like that.

"Hey, Vern!" Erica smiled, waving her arm in the air as if she wanted to get his attention.

"What's up, V-man?" Rachel asked, smirking as all four girls walked up to the van parked on the side of the street.

"We saw you guys walking home. Why don't you have a ride?" Vern asked, noting the girls being out all alone and with no way home.

"We tried calling our sensei, but she didn't answer at all. It didn't even go to voicemail or anything." Danielle answered, shivering from the cold breeze blowing their way.

"You guys wanna ride home? Me and April were heading uptown anyways." Vern asked, hoping the girls would take his offer.

"Can this giant wagon hold all of us in there?" Lauren asked, looking at the silver van with interest.

"Get your asses in here before I drag you in here myself." April smirked, laughing as the sisters ran to the back of the van, opened the doors, and climbed into the back of the van, minding the equipment that was buried behind the couple.

"Hey, careful back there! That's very expensive equipment I've got back there! I don't need you breaking that shit on me already now!" Vern growled, laughing as Rachel tried to throw her shoe at the man.

"Listen, old man. You're giving us a ride, whether you like it or not." Rachel smirked, only to be thrown back into her seat by Lauren.

"Sorry about that." Danielle apologized, her gaze down to the floor, almost as if she was ashamed to be getting a ride from someone.

"Don't worry about it guys. We owe you one since you guys helped us with the information about the robbery last night." April said, smiling as she looked at her young friends.

"You guys hungry? We'll grab something on the way home. My treat." Vern offered, smiling to the girls before driving uptown where the traffic jams were well known for being backed up.

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An hour went by as the group were stuck in the work van, caught in a traffic jam in uptown Brooklyn. Everyone was eating on the go: Taco Bell, Burger King, Starbucks, you name it. Everyone was munching on something while being stuck in this jam. Vern was smiling and laughing as the girls were joking and goofing around in the back, hoping to make the time go by faster until the traffic let up.

"You guys are too much, sometimes." Vern laughed as he looked behind him while stuffing a taco into his mouth.

"Hey, we have to be the entertainment around here." Erica laughed, digging through her bag of goodies while sipping on her iced soda.

"Seriously, though. If you guys need anything, no matter what it is, we're here for you." April smiled, looking at her friends with a passion of happiness.

"Thanks, April. We really appreciate it." Lauren said as she looked at the two in the front seat.

Everyone was chit chatting with one another, enjoying each other's company and food. The traffic jam was starting to get to them; after waiting over an hour and a half, no one was moving from their spot. Vern sat in his seat, wondering what was taking so long for the traffic to move. It's never been this backed up before, especially in uptown Brooklyn at this time of night.

"I just don't understand why Thompson won't give me a chance at this story." April complained, looking out the window at the people moving around on the sidewalks while they were stuck in the camera van.

"You mean the superhero thing? Come on, April. You know as well as I do that until you have solid and tangible evidence to give Thompson, she won't take you seriously. Besides, you need more proof anyways to give your story any credit." Vern interjected, looking at April with a sadness, understanding her frustration with getting this huge story off the ground.

"You sure you don't need any help with this April? Me and the others could help you out?" Erica asked, hoping she would get some sort of action tonight.

"Eri, you know we're not suppose to be out after 11 anyways." Danielle said, looking at her younger sister with worry, knowing that Eri and Rachel are the two who are more likely to sneak out at night and go investigating on this wild goose chase.

"Dani, please? You know how much this means to April. Besides, we get to explore parts of the city at night that we never get to see besides being out in the daytime." Rachel replied, looking on to hopefully get out as well.

"No way. We made a promise until we _all_ turn eighteen, we are not to be out past our curfew." Lauren intervened, looking at the younger girls, since she was technically responsible for the safety of her younger siblings.

"Oh, for fuck sake's, Lauren! We're not little tykes anymore! We're able to handle ourselves!" Rachel argued, getting in Lauren's face, knowing that they can take care of themselves.

"Rach, I'm not having this argument with you, and you know it. We made a promise to sensei, and we're not breaking it." Lauren sternly said, grinding her teeth together in frustration.

"Seriously, Lee. You need to get the stick that's up your ass out, and have some fun for once." Rachel growled, looking at her sister in annoyance.

"Guys, please. Let's just forget about arguing and focus on getting home. I really don't want Shimizu-sensei getting mad at us again for being late." Danielle whimpered, knowing that they would get in trouble for being home late.

"I don't understand. Does your mom never answer her phone after a certain time?" Vern asked as he tried calling their sensei twice already.

"No, she never sleeps until all of us are home." Eri said, looking out the window seeing if anything is moving or not.

"That's weird. She always picks up. Is she out and about and she didn't tell you guys?" Vern asked again, trying to get service on his phone.

"She would always call us if she was going out." Danielle answered, wondering what was going on.

Loud crashes and screaming came from the subway entrance at the corner of the road; masses of people were crying out, yelling and screaming and running away from whatever was scaring them. The sound of gunshots rang through the air, making everyone in the work van jump up startled.

"What the hell is going on? Where is everyone going?" Vern asked, wondering what the commotion was all about.

"I bet you it's got something to do with the vigilante." Eri said, getting up from her seat and climbing out the back doors of the van, running into the crowd of people.

"ERI!" Lauren yelled as she went after her little sister.

"Ah, shit! Here we go again!" Rachel growled as she followed Lauren out and into the traffic of people.

"Oh jeez! I knew we should've taken the bus." Danielle whispered as she went after her sisters, hoping that they wouldn't get into any trouble.

"GUYS! Get back in here!" Vern yelled, trying to get the girls' attention and get back into the van.

"Lee! Rach! Dani! Eri!" April yelled, hoping to get the girls to come back, but it was too late.

The four sisters disappeared into the mass of people running from the subway entrance; whatever they wanted to find, it would not be pleasant for any of them.

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**Author's Note: Dun, dun, dun! I love cliffhangers. So, I'm trying to get more details into this story. I want to give the girls a playful nature but at the same time, make them a little more braver than they look. What will the girls get into? Will Vern and April be able to save the girls before they get themselves into deeper trouble? Tune in to the next chapter. Reviews are welcome :D **


	3. Attacked

**Author's Note: Okay, so now that I've got my groove back, I'm going to be updating this a lot more. You guys are awesome :D More is to come within the next few chapters and it'll definitely pick up.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. I only own my OCs. **

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Eri ran as fast as she could through the tight crowd of screaming people, fighting her way to get down the stairs and see what was going on. She shouldn't have left her sisters in the van, but curiosity got the best of her, and she was always the curious one of the sisters, so to speak.

"Hey! What's going on?! Why are you running?!" Eri yelled, trying to get answers from the terrified crowd.

"RUN! They've got guns!" a young woman yelled as she ran past Eri, screaming for her life.

Eri ran down the crowded staircase to the subway entrance, almost gluing herself to the tiled wall, waiting for everyone to get out of the entrance to further investigate. She felt around her pocket to make sure she had her phone on her. She did; pulling it out, she turned it onto silent mode, and waited for her heartbeat to slow down. Hopefully, she could get a chance to see this mysterious vigilante that April was talking about. Eri looked around the corner a little bit, and glued herself back into wall, seeing two men dressed in black and wielding large guns dashed across the hallway and down the stairs to the subway, yelling and shooting at random. Erica breathed heavily, trying to keep quiet as she battled in her mind whether to take the chance and go investigate or run like hell and get out while she still had the chance.

Eri pulled herself away from the tiled wall, and was about to start off on her investigation when she felt someone grab her shoulder from behind and pull her away from being seen.

"What the fu- Lauren?!" Eri hissed, glaring at her sister in shock.

"Eri! Are you out of your mind?" Lauren whispered heatedly, looking at her sister like she was insane.

"You have lost your motherfucking mind, sis! I mean, literally!" Rachel hissed louder, wondering why she would take off like that.

"Seriously, guys! This is a huge chance to help out April. We really need this just as much as she does." Erica said, looking down at her camera phone and back out into the deserted lobby.

"But, Eri . . . is it really with it? Let's just get out while we still have the chance." Danielle whispered as she looked back up the stairs leading to the city.

Erica looked at her sisters for a moment, then back at her camera phone. All she wanted to do was to help April out with her story. But, at the same time, she didn't want to risk her safety nor the safety of her sisters.

"Yeah, you're right. But, at least can we make sure no one is hurt first? Then we'll leave and go back to April and Vern. I promise." Eri sighed looking at her sisters with pleading eyes.

"Oh, Jesus and all that is holy, woman! You're going to get us killed." Rachel growled, looking at her sister like she really lost her marbles.

"Fine, but only for a moment." Lauren agreed, but looking at her with a defiant look of distrust.

Erica jumped up in glee as she ran over to the gate and jumped over the railings, looking around for anything that would catch her eye. The other three sisters looked at each other and begrudgingly followed Erica onto the other side of the railing. They looked around, watching each other's backs while investigating. Lauren felt the hairs on the back of her neck stick up, alerting her that someone or something was watching them. She glanced around, looking at every corner of the station.

"Come on, guys. We need to hurry." Rachel growled, watching Eri and Danielle wander towards the stairway and shot a few pictures of the scene.

Eri took a step down onto the stairs, and clicked the button on her camera phone. She remembered to take the flash off before using it, and looked down the stairway, seeing a black figure guarding the stairs with their back towards the girls. She saw that uniform before - the Foot clan! Oh, shit, they had to get out now before they were seen. Danielle grabbed her younger sister and pulled her up, but both tumbled backwards and crashing onto the tiled floor, alerting the guard at the bottom of the stairwell.

"Who's there?!" the black-clad guard yelled as footsteps were heard.

The four sisters looked at each other, and started running towards the main staircase of the substation. No matter how fast they ran, more of the Foot soldiers showed up, grabbing each of the sisters hard and halting their chances of escape. Lauren was grabbed by the back of the shirt, and tossed onto the floor by one soldier; Rachel was tackled to the ground, her head turned to the side and pinned down; Danielle was grabbed by the arms and restrained easily; and Erica was grabbed by the waist and had a gun held to her head.

"Get movin'! NOW!" one of the guards yelled as they began ushering the girls down the stairs and to the other hostages being held against their wills. The girls struggled against the guards to get away, but their grips on all of them proved too strong to break.

For once, Erica wished she had listened to her instincts and not her heart.

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The monitors glowed brightly in the lair, each one showing a different angle of the subway stations above the sewer systems. The Foot clan were on the move tonight, and their activity tonight was very heavy. The humans were being held against their will, taken as hostages for whatever sick and twisted game that the Foot were planning tonight.

"Surveillance is showing heavy, heavy Foot clan activity." Donatello said, glancing at each of the cameras, wondering why the Foot were so active tonight.

"They're taking hostages." Raphael stated, hoping to get some action tonight.

"What? You know, we're not suppose to go up top." Leonardo berated, knowing what the consequences were if they did travel up to the surface.

"We started something, and now we gotta finish it." Raphael said, glancing at the one camera that had the four girls being forced to the ground and held at gunpoint.

"This is insane! That cat is playing chopsticks WITH chopsticks!" Michelangelo exclaimed, noticing the smaller screen that had a small orange cat paying a piano with chopsticks tied around its paws.

"Don't be an idiot!" Leonardo growled as he punched a button on the keyboad console, and the screen went to the security footage in the substation.

They looked at the screen that had the four sisters held as hostages, wondering what was going to happen.

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Karai looked at the surroundings, noting the number of hostages that were being held down here. She smirked and knew that the results were in their favor. She had the vigilantes right where she wanted. Karai stalked over to the four girls in front of her, looking at each of them with an evil gleam in her eye. These four would be the perfect targets to get to their enemies. Her black hair that was pulled up high in a ponytail swished behind her, the red highlights bled from behind the black curtain of her bangs.

"We know you're out there! If you don't surrender, we start executing the hostages!" Karai yelled, looking all over the subway to find their enemy.

Danielle shook hard, her anxiety levels were reaching sky high. She looked over at Eri, hoping that maybe she had some kind of plan to get them out of this. She shifted her hand around in her pocket, and pulled out her phone to see what she can do to get out of this. In a brief few seconds, she pulled the phone up and took a picture of Karai before putting it back into her pocket.

Karai heard the sound and looked at Danielle, her gun trained onto her.

"YOU! Stand up!" Karai yelled, walking briskly over to Danielle, who shook hard.

XXX

Donatello looked at the screen with his brothers, his body shaking in pure rage as the one female Foot soldier had her fun on the poor girl with the glasses on. She was so beautiful, just as her other companions were. He didn't understand why they would target these girls in particular. They've done nothing wrong. He watched as the young girl stood up, and held her gaze at the Foot soldier. He wished he had audio built into the security cameras so he could hear what was being said. He watched silently as the young girl stood her ground and glared back at the black-clad woman.

XXX

Danielle looked at her captor, her gaze defiant and stubborn. She knew she was screwed, but if she was going to be backed into a corner, she would go down swinging. Her heart beat loudly; her breath lost in her throat; her stomach tight in knots, she would do the unthinkable if she had no choice.

"Give me your phone!" Karai yelled, her gun pointed straight at Danielle.

Lauren and the other two girls looked at their sister, wondering what she was going to do. Danielle slowly slid her hand into her pocket, and started to turn her body a little bit to the side. She looked at Eri, and winked at her, then whipping around and backhanding Karai in the face; the gun flying out of her hands and across the tiled floor. Erica looked in shock as she knew Danielle was never the fighter, but she was proud of her sister for taking this scary chance. Each of the girls began fighting off their guard, kicking and punching whoever was in their way.

Danielle ran over to the gun, hoping to get it until she was kicked hard in the stomach. She fell to the ground, clutching her stomach as she looked up at her attacker. Karai was pissed; how dare the little shit hit a Foot soldier, let alone her?! She grabbed the girl by the roots of her hair, and pulled her up to her knees, glaring at the girl with envy and intensity.

"You little bitch!" Karai yelled, slapping her hard enough for her glasses to fall off her face, and experience whiplash. Danielle gritted her teeth, hoping to bear the pain that she was taught by her sensei. Her lip was already busted open, her face starting to bruise from the painful blow.

Rachel saw what was going on, her younger sister being beaten by that Foot soldier bitch. Her blood raged; she kicked the one guard in his groin, and ran towards her sister. But before she could reach her, Rachel was tackled down by two more guards and struggled to get to her sister. She was being punched hard, her head smashed against the concrete and being kicked in the stomach. Lauren ran to her sisters, but she wasn't fast enough. She was yanked hard up against the wall, and was being assaulted, but tried to defend herself. Eri, who tried to get Karai off of Danielle, was punched hard and fell onto her back while feeling someone attack her hard.

"You four will be the first to die!" Karai yelled as she attacked Danielle with a ferocious appetite, signaling her men to attack the other girls hard with no mercy.

XXXXX

Leonardo watched the scene played out in disgust; how the Foot have lowered themselves to common criminals. But that wasn't what got him; it was the fact that the Foot clan were attacking innocent young girls to get their attention. This was getting out of hand; those girls would be dead if they didn't make a move soon, and that was a guilt that he couldn't live with.

"Jesus, we can't sit here and do nothing!" Raphael yelled, pacing back and forth like a caged animal, waiting to strike out.

"Leo, we need to help them." Michelangelo begged, looking at the screens in horror as the Foot continued to beat the living hell out of the girls. He didn't like that at all.

Donatello was shaking; he felt like this was more than trying to get their attention. This was personal; he didn't know why, but he felt the need to go up and protect that innocent girl.

"Alright. Let's Rock and Roll, boys!" Leonardo commanded, fist pumping with Raphael before leaving the lair, grabbing their weapons off the wall and going up to the battlefield.

XXXXX

**Author's Note: Sweet! We finally get to see some action! I love giving cliffhangers :-) Hope you guys enjoy the chapter. Now I'll be working onto the next chapter! Reviews are welcome!**


	4. Like A Shadow

**Author's Note: Woo-hoo! Love how this is going! The girls are in trouble and the guys get to make their appearance :-) Now let the shenanigans commence ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to the creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Karai heaved as she threw Danielle down onto the cold ground, frustrated that she was attacked by a little girl. How dare she lay a hand on her; SHE - a leader of the Foot Clan. No one dared lay a hand on her and not face the consequences. Each girl was on the ground, bloodied and bruised. All four groaned and whimpered in pain; how futile their efforts were.

"ENOUGH! We've waited long enough! You've given us no choice! We're forced to execute hostages, and these four will be the start!" Karai yelled throughout the station, seeing who will be the next hero that will foolishly try to stop them.

Karai paced back and forth, begging to see these vigilantes come out and fight. But, seeing as the cowards that they are, she is forced to start executing people. She looked down at the four girls, seeing them grovel at her feet. The guards watched over them, pointing their guns at them in case they tried anymore stupid attempts of fighting back. Lauren had gashes along her cheeks, temples, and knuckles. She had scrapes and bruises along her knees, shins, arms and elbows; she was a mess, but not as bad as Rachel and the other two. Rachel had a busted lip; broken wrist, cracked collarbone and dislocated right shoulder, which she wished she could move, but had a large foot clamped down on it. Erica had a broken rib or two; dislocated knee, fractured shin; gashes across her neck, cheeks, bruised eye and bloodied hands. Dani . . . Danielle was the worst of the four. She had both her eyes bruised; four bruised ribs; broken glasses, busted lip, cracked wrist, bruised cheekbone and bruised shoulders. She laid on the floor like a limp rag doll; lifeless, almost nothing was glowing in her eyes.

"D-Dani . . ." Lauren stuttered, trying to reach out for her sister, but having her hand kicked away by a Foot soldier.

"Well, since you won't come out, we'll start off the executions!" Karai yelled, saluting to her soldiers to grab Danielle off the ground. Seeing this, Rachel and Eri struggled against the Foot soldiers that held them down.

"Get your goddamn hands off my sister!" Rachel growled before she was punched hard in the stomach, groaning and coughing from the blow.

Karai looked on as Danielle was being held up, her bloodied face in view of the black mistress. She grabbed the girl by the hair, jerking her head up so she could see the dull look in her eyes, smirking in her victory. She was the one who demolished the girl in the first place, so she felt the right was hers to execute this pathetic piece of trash.

"You'll be first to go. Say goodbye to your sisters, you little shit!" Karai growled as she pointed her gun at the girl, her finger on the trigger ready to pull.

Danielle looked at the girl wearily, then glanced at her sisters, seeing their distressed looks. She knew she was screwed, but at least she lived a good life.

XXX

The lights in the station went out in a flash, leaving the inhabitants wondering in shock and distress. The Foot soldiers looked around, wondering why it went dark all of a sudden. Karai was confused; she didn't give the order to shut the lights off. She shouted in Japanese, wondering who was there. A train rushed by them, loud noises of the railings driving by and scraping against metal. A large figure jumped off the train, and ran as fast as they could to the people in distress. Gunshots were heard; Karai was shooting at whatever was coming at her.

Leonardo jumped down from the moving train, and ran as fast as he could to the attackers, his double katana swinging and slicing through the weapons of the Foot soldiers. He dodged and kicked at the oncoming attackers, blocking their measly attacks like they were nothing. He punched hard, sending one Foot soldier after the other into the wall of the station, hearing their bodies connect with the tiled wall with a sickening crunch. He turned his head to see Raphael jump down and began punching at anything that was in his way. Well, anything that was a threat to him and his brothers.

Michelangelo threw Karai against the wall, her body hitting the wall with a few tiles coming down with her in a sweet but sickening crunch. She was rendered unconscious, but that was alright to Mikey. He grabbed his nunchakus and began disarming Foot soldiers from their weapons, whacking at whatever was coming at him. Each Foot soldier that went down in his path was a sweet little victory in his mind, not that anyone was keep count.

"Like a shadow, bro!" Mikey yelled as he watched Leo punch and kick at one Foot soldier against the wall, beating the light out of him while Raphael kicked the Foot across the shiny floor like they were pieces of garbage.

"Guys, where are the girls?" Michelangelo yelled, grabbing both Leo and Raph's attention for a brief second.

"Find them." Leonardo ordered, watching Raphael nod his head in agreement before finishing their job with the remaining Foot soldiers.

XXX

Donatello bashed one of the Foot soldiers in the back, with his bo knocking him unconscious before he looked down. He knelt down, and gently turned the body around on its side to see Danielle. Her bloodied features alone made him suck in a gasp; oh, how they hurt this poor girl for no reason. These low lives had no honor; they were cowards who seek to harm innocent lives just for fun. He gently caressed her cheek while tugging his goggles to check her vital signs. He ran a general diagnostics but didn't have enough time; she was breathing and that was all that mattered. He looked behind him, and saw the other three girls out cold, but breathing regardless. He turned back to Danielle, brushing back some of her hair from her face, noticing all the scrapes, bruises and blood that began to crust along her temple. She was gorgeous. He saw her broken glasses next to her, and gently brought them into his hand and tuck them into his utility belt.

He watched as the girl tried to open her eyes, and turned to look at him. He held his breath as he braced himself for the scream, but it never came. He saw how dazed her eyes were; probably due to not having her glasses on. She raised her hand and shakily caressed Donnie's cheek; her mind registering that her savior wasn't a figure of her imagination. Donatello froze, her touch was soft and gentle; he never been touched in a matter like this. He always dreamed of being touched like this, even though knowing it was logically impossible. But maybe, for a brief moment, it was a reality to come true someday. Donatello shook his head from his nonsense imaginations, knowing that this was not one of the best situations, he knew for certain that she was alive.

"Who . . . Wh-" Danielle tried to stutter, but her voice croaked after being dry from screaming out in pain.

"Shh, it's okay. I'm going to get you out of here." Donatello whispered, caressing her uninjured cheek before she fluttered her eyes down, and went back into unconsciousness.

"Guys! We need to get them out of here!" Donnie yelled, as he looked down at the girl before gently picking her up.

Danielle whimpered slightly, and curled somewhat into her savior's grasp. Donatello looked down at the girl, who curled into his plastron and whimpered at the pain. He held her gently, and jogged over to the edge of the entrance while trying not to agitate her injuries any further. Leonardo looked at his younger brother, who held one of the four girls that were heavily injured. Leonardo ran over to the other three, and checked the pulse of the one with black hair. She was unconscious and alive; there was something about her that made him even more worried about her.

"Guys! Grab a girl and let's go!" Leonardo ordered as he picked up Lauren and carried her over to Donnie.

Raphael and Mikey looked over at the other two girls, and picked them up. Raph picked up Rachel and hoisted her up so she was laying on his shoulder. Mikey grabbed Eri and held her close to him while joining up with his brothers at the edge of the platform. They looked around and quickly jumped while catching onto the top of the next train, leaving the Foot soldiers wounded and tied up for the police and the hostages in safe hands.

XXXX

The turtles jumped down at the next stop and ran to their hidden door within the wall. Donatello held Danielle with one arm, and typed in the code before adjusting his grip on her; the door opening while they ushered inside. The door closed and the four brothers looked at one another while looking at each of the girls in their arms.

"So, what do we do now?" Raph asked, looking at Leo while holding Rachel on his shoulder, noticing how fragile she actually looked.

"We can't just leave them here. They need medical attention." Mikey said, looking down at Eri, anxious to see if the girls were alive or not.

"They can't stay here. We're putting ourselves at risk by having them in the Lair." Leonardo said, looking down at Lauren with concern.

"Leo, we don't have much of choice here. We have to bring them to the Lair." Donnie said, carefully holding Danielle while walking towards the main hatch door to their subterranean home.

"Dammit, Leo! They could die right now!" Raph yelled, jerking a little bit by accident. Rachel groaned in pain, which made Raphael look at her to make sure she was alright.

Leonardo looked down at Lauren, who was unconscious and breathing lightly. He knew they needed medical attention, but was it worth the risk of protecting his brothers as well as their father? Would he deal with the wrath from Splinter or let these innocent girls die from their ignorance? Leonardo sighed, knowing that his brothers were right.

"Alright, we'll take them home." Leo commanded at once, walking to the opened hatch door where Donnie held Danielle. He knew the risk, but he was willing to take that chance to help these girls. Maybe they would keep their secret.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Woo-hoo! Two chapters in one day! I'm totally on a roll right now! So the turtles saved our lovely girls, but what will happen now? We need to know! Oh, don't you love how I put you guys on cliffhangers? :-D Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter, I'll be working on the next one. **


	5. Tending Injuries

**Author's Note: Hey, dudes! I'm so happy right now! For the readers that have been reviewing my story lately, I thank you very much! You have given me more reason to keep updating this! For those who may not have known, I'm basing this off of the 2014 movie! I love the character designs of the turtles, and I thought it would be more interesting if we had some form of romance here ;-) Totally am in love with these guys. Here's a challenge for you guys: Who is your favorite ninja turtle? When you review this, write it in the comments.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights belong to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXX

Splinter sat in his mediation room, deep in thought and relaxed. He breathed in deeply, the sense of being calm registered throughout his mind and body. His brownish-gray fur bristled as his keen hearing picked up the sound of the hatch door in the dojo open loudly. He had a suspicion that it was too quiet within the Lair; his sons were known to get into mischief whenever they had the chance. He clearly remembered when Michelangelo was maybe seven, eight at the max, and was almost spotted by a little human girl at a school playground. He disciplined him by forcing him two weeks of intense training three times a day and no pizza for dinner.

"Kids . . " Splinter growled under his breath as he stood up from his relaxed position and walked out of his mediation room and into the large dojo. His yellow robe slightly dragging on the ground, his sandals lightly clanking onto the cold concrete. His black eyes scanned the dojo as he watched Donatello enter first, then Leonardo following immediately close then Raphael and Michelangelo coming in afterwards.

But that wasn't what got his fur standing at attention. It was the figures that each of his sons were holding in their grasps. It was a human . . . no, FOUR humans. But what made it even worse was that they were four human GIRLS! He was disappointed in his sons; how could they break his trust?! He trained them not to be seen, let alone associate with themselves with the people above ground. Splinter marched over to his sons, demanding to know why they had jeopardized their existence.

"My sons! What have you done?! Why would you -" Splinter began yelling at his sons, waiting to hear their explanation for their latest mischief.

"Sensei, please listen! We had no choice but to help them." Leonardo began to explain, looking at his father with an urgent look in his eyes.

"Enough! You disobeyed a direct order, why do you go above ground? What happened?!" Master Splinter yelled as he whacked his oldest son in the back of the head with his tail, glaring at all four of his sons.

"M-masta Splinter we had to ..."Raphael began to explain, but felt his sensei's tail coil around his throat threateningly.

"Father . . . Please listen." Donatello pleaded, looking at his father with a desperate look.

Splinter looked at his purple-clad son, seeing the desperate pleading look in his eyes. Donatello was usually the pacifist of the four brothers, but he never was one for pleading. The sincere look in his face was enough to calm his anger, but for a brief moment.

"Very well. Tell me what happened." Splinter calmly said, looking at his sons first then at each of the girls they held in their arms.

"We were watching the surveillance cameras I had planted within the subway station. We saw the Foot clan taking hostages, and began attacking these four girls. They had done nothing wrong. They . . ." Donatello began explaining until he looked down at Danielle, his features bunched with worry and concern for the young girl who was cradled closely to his plastron.

"Go on." Splinter urged, watching his son's reaction to the girl.

"We ... we-" Donatello began stuttering until Michelangelo butted in.

"We totally kicked their asses, and rescued these hot babes. Well, besides them being covered in blood and whatnot." Mikey exaggerated while he held Eri in his arms.

"Mikey." Raphael growled as he looked at his younger brother agitated.

"What? It's the truth." Mikey asked, trying to defend his point.

"Sensei, these girls. They . . . they mean something to us. We wouldn't have brought them down here if we didn't view them important. They were attacked by those cowards, and were left for dead. They need our help, dad. Would you rather have us leave them to die or at least help them?" Leonardo asked his father, looking down at Lauren then back to his sensei.

Splinter contemplated for a moment, looking at the girls then back at his sons. He did train his sons to help the innocent, but to not be seen by anyone. He feared that society would reject them for what they were, and they would be captured and experimented on. He would never allow that, not to his sons who he loved with everything he held dearly. He walked over to Leonardo, and looked down at Lauren who he cradled gently in his arms. Splinter placed his clawed hand onto Lauren's forehead, and watched her for a brief moment. She whimpered for a brief second, and settled back into unconsciousness. Maybe this wouldn't be a bad idea; it may have given them a chance to help and still have their existence kept a secret.

"Please ..." Leonardo pleaded, his eyes watching his father then glancing back down at the young girl in his arms.

"I see. As much as I wouldn't have allowed this, we have no choice. Bring them into the mediation room, and tend to their wounds." Splinter ordered, watching his sons spring into action and began tending to the girls' injuries.

Splinter watched his sons work effortlessly to tend to the injuries each girl had sustained in battle. While they were young and naive, he could see the understanding within each of them. He, too, felt like these girls had an importance to his children. He walked over cautiously, glancing at each of his sons working on the injuries. Maybe this was a chance for society to redeem itself and bestow mercy on his sons.

XXX

Three exhausting and enduring hours later, the turtles had just finished patching and tending to the injuries that each girl had sustained. They didn't have the proper materials for what the girls really needed, but they would suffice with that they had. The difference between the turtles and the human girls was the fact that they could heal quicker than humans. Although they knew it was embarrassing and uncouth of them, they had to strip the girls down to their under clothing, which they prayed hadn't been anything too revealing. Well, maybe a little. When Donatello took off Danielle's pants, he thought he was going to have a heart attack and die from how embarrassing it was to undress a young girl without her permission. Her attire was a little . . .sexy, if that's the word you were looking for. Luckily, the turtles had a few spare but overly large t-shirts laying around and slipped them on each girl without agitating their injuries any further.

Raphael had to relocate Rachel's right shoulder, which she whimpered loudly. He felt her pain, wincing himself when he had to pop the joint back into its socket. He had her shoulder in a makeshift sling, supporting her arm and broken wrist. Other than that and her cracked collarbone, she would be alright. He carried her carefully over to their beds, and slowly laid her down while minding her injuries. He admired her spirit - she was a spitfire. He watched how she handled the Foot soldiers on her own, as well as try to defend her sisters. Even though it ended badly for her, she was still a strong warrior in his eyes. He took one of his pillows and carefully stuffed it underneath her injured shoulder to give it more cushion.

"Damn. You put up a good fight." Raphael muttered, looking over the freshly growing bruises and cuts she adorned on her face and body. Even through the bruises and cuts, he had to admit to himself, the girl was definitely a sore eye when it came to beauty.

"Raph, did you put the blindfold on her?" Leo asked, forcing Raphael to turn his head to see his older brother carrying the black haired girl to his bed.

"Really, Leo? Do we really have to do that?" Raph asked, rolling his eyes in defiance.

"We have to. Master Splinter told us we have to blindfold their eyes as a precaution." Leo answered, carefully laying Lauren in his bed while minding her head.

Leonardo was the one who took extreme care to Lauren. Although she wasn't as bad as her sisters, he knew she still needed medical attention. Her temples were wrapped in gauze and tape; her gashes and scrapes were cleaned with disinfectant to prevent any infection. She had a large gauze pad taped to her one cheek; wraps on her arms, one leg and butterfly bandages along her shins, elbows, and knuckles. He admired how she fought, and that was something he could relate to. He gently ripped a strip of bandage wrapping from the roll of gauze he held in his hand, and gently tied it around her eyes. He hated to do it, but he wouldn't want to risk it at the moment. He sighed, looking at his patchwork; he wasn't the greatest, but it would do. He looked over, and saw Raphael rip a strip from his bandanna and tie it around the other girl's eyes, careful to not get it tangled in her hair.

"Dude, these chicks put up one hell of a fight." Mikey stated as he helped set Eri down in his bed, placing two pillows underneath her left knee.

Patching her up was a lot of work. Michelangelo had to ask Leo for help, considering he had no idea how to pop back in a major joint into its socket. When Leo popped her knee back in place, the girl screamed for a brief moment before falling back int unconsciousness. He and Leo both helped clean her wounds; bandaging her up was the easiest part of the whole process. Eri had two bruised ribs, which was a godsend; although her ribs had to be taped up just as her knee in order to keep them from slipping out of place. Her hands and left shoulder were wrapped in gauze pads; she wasn't as lucky as Lauren, but she wasn't in critical condition like her sister Danielle.

"I mean, did you see how they kicked the Foot around -" Mikey tried to talk while blindfolding Eri's eyes, minding her one bruised eye.

"Not now, Mikey." Leo grumbled, looking at him with tired eyes.

But the worst of the four was yet to come. Donatello finally finished cleaning Danielle's wounds up, and began to wrap her in bandages. He quickly noticed that they would need to get more medical supplies soon. Her cheek was strategically adorned with a gauze pad taped on; her ribs bruised but not out of place. She required stitches, and that was the hard part. He didn't want to damage her skin any further than what it received. But he had little choice; he was careful, mindful of her as a person; as a young girl, she was beautiful. He took her image in, noticing every freckle along her cheeks and nose; every strand of brown hair that was stained with blood. He patched her up as best as he could, and overlooked his work. He sometimes wondered if he should be a surgeon, considering that he had patched up his brothers many times.

He felt her pain when he cleaned her up; she hissed under her breath many times, even cried out when the pain was unbearable, but she never opened her eyes. Her bruised eyes; oh, how he hoped to see them open again and shine her beautiful teal eyes to him again. Donatello admired her; adored her; hell, he wasn't sure what he was feeling. It was as if his chest constricted in pain for her and for himself.

"Donnie, you need any help?" Leonardo asked, noticing how his younger brother took his time with the last girl.

"What? No; no, I'm just finishing up." Donatello said, carefully picking up Danielle and carrying her over to his bed.

She was the last to be worked on. He laid her down, and cradled her head gently against the pillow. He looked at her face; her precious beauty that would heal soon, he hoped. He didn't want to blind her any further; he felt his chest tighten, feeling his breathing start to quicken. Holy mother of God, what the hell was he feeling? Why was he feeling this way? He was the logical thinker; the inventor; the genius who helped his brothers out. Good lord, he was losing his sanity just by looking at her.

"Brainiac, come on. Blindfold her so we can go to bed." Raph growled, looking at him with fatigue.

Donnie glared at him, but said nothing. He took off his purple wrap on his right shoulder, and gently tied it around her eyes. He was careful to not bruise them anymore than how they were. He was shaking; he felt like he could've been there sooner. He didn't know the girl, and yet, he felt like he knew her his entire life. He brushed away her bangs, and softly caressed her unscathed cheek; a small smile adorning his features. She was safe as were her sisters, and that's all that mattered at his point.

"Alright guys. We each take turns watching them. If any of them start feeling pain, we grab another one of us, and take care of them." Leonardo said watching the girls rest in their beds.

"So, where do we sleep, fearless?" Raphael asked, looking annoyed that beds were taken up.

"Couch." Leo growled, not in the mood for another fight tonight.

"Who gets to watch the dudettes first?" Mikey asked, glancing between his brothers and the girls.

"I'll take first watch, and we rotate." Leo volunteered, watching Donnie for a brief moment before placing his hand on the younger brother's shoulder.

"Get some sleep, Don. You look like you need it. I'll wake you up when it's your shift." Leo said, noting that Donnie took off his glasses and rubbed at his tired eyes.

Donatello knew that his brother was right. He hadn't slept that well in the last two days, and he really could use the sleep. He looked down at Danielle one last time, and slowly got up, walking over towards his computer lab.

"Oh no, bro. You take the couch. You need it." Raphael said, knowing that his genius brother was going to do another all nighter.

He looked at Raph, and nodded his head absently; he and Mikey took up the couch while Raph took the club chair. Donnie's mind was racing, even though his eyes begged to rest. He closed his eyes, allowing sleep to finally claim him after fighting with his mind and heart. But behind his eyelids, he could see her; Danielle, in her most beautiful form. He, as well as his brothers, were able to get some sleep for a change.

XXX

**Author's Note: Phew! This chapter took a while to write. Well, I hope you guys enjoy it! I pulled a half nighter to keep you entertained :P So, does anyone feel like Donnie has a crush on Danielle already? Only time will tell. Reviews are welcomed, and keep reading folks! See you in the next chapter. **


	6. Tell Me Your Name

**Author's Note: Alright, folks! I'm so thanking you guys for reviewing my story. I'm so happy with the reviews, which means I will continue more with the story. Keep on reading, my darlings! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

For three days, each of the turtle brothers took shifts in watching the girls. Mostly they were all unconscious; although at one point, one of the girls stirred in her sleep, groaning in pain. Raphael was on shift when Rachel began to stir, her shoulder hurting even more after being put back in place. She moved her shoulder slightly, and began whimpering softly; Raphael walked over to her and slowly pressed his large hand onto her shoulder and she calmed down almost instantly. She settled back down in the bed, and slightly whimpered from the loss of his touch when he went to grab the medicine from the kitchenette. He came back with a couple of pain relievers and a cup of calming chamomile tea. He gently cupped the back of her head, and lifted her slightly to give her the medicine. He tipped the cup of tea slightly, and watched her drink the tea slowly; her body instantly calming down. Raphael lowered her back down and waited a minute before returning to his seat.

Raph almost fell asleep in his chair when he felt someone nudge him hard enough to wake the sleeping turtle. He glared at Leo, who held a cup of tea in one hand and rubbed his eyes with the other. The blue-clad turtle was tired; he had been up half the first night then Michelangelo took the remaining half of the night. Raphael and Leonardo have been trading places between the second night, but now it was Donatello's turn.

"Hey." Leonardo grumbled, eyeing his brother wearily.

"Hey. Want me to wake the brainiac?" Raph grumbled, looking at his older brother sleepily.

"Yeah. Have they woken up at all?" Leo asked, turning to each of the girls.

"The one in my bed did. Gave her s' pain relievers. Settled down and hasn't woken up." Raph slurred, eyeing Rachel in his bed then rubbed his eyes with his thick fingers.

"Go get some sleep. I'll wake Donnie." Leo said, walking out of the bedroom and over to the couch, looking down at his younger brothers.

Donatello was out cold; he only woke up for a brief moment or two before settling back down and falling asleep again. His glasses were off and laying on the makeshift table; his equipment off and laying over by the computer lab. He laid his head on his arm bent as a pillow laying on his side. Mikey was on the other side of the couch, snoring and lying on his shell. Oh, hell no, this was going to be a long night. Leo leaned down and shook Donnie hard, waking the purple-clad turtle abruptly.

"Don, come on. Wake up." Leo grumbled, shaking his brother as he watched Donatello wake up and rub his eyes to get the sleep away.

"Hmm? What?" Don asked, disoriented and looked up at his older brother.

"Your turn to keep watch. I'll grab you coffee." Leonardo answered, downing his tea while walking away to make coffee for his brother.

Donatello sat up and rubbed his eyes away from the sleep, before slipping his large glasses back on his face. He sat up and stretched for a moment, unwinding the kinks out of his limbs and walked around the couch to their beds. He glared at Mikey, who was snoring away loudly. He groaned, shaking his head as he walked over to the seat that Raphael occupied for a moment. He watched his brother stand up, rolling his shoulders from being stiff and walked away.

"Have fun, bro." Raph muttered, sleep ready to claim him as well. As Donatello sat down in the chair, he heard Raph growl before hitting Mikey in the plastron to shut him up from snoring loudly and sank into the couch. Thank God, he would at least have a quiet night to keep an eye on the girls. Leonardo came over to him with a pipping hot cup of coffee for his brother.

"Here you go. Just like you make it." Leo said, carefully handing the cup to his brother.

Donnie took a sip of his coffee, and smiled to himself. He took his coffee with two teaspoons of sugar, and lots of french vanilla creamer. He sat back and sipped his coffee, smiling at Leo for the offer.

"If you need anything, let me know."

"I got it." Donatello said, watching Leo walk away and go into the club chair before falling asleep.

XXX

Donnie sat in his chair, eyeing each of the girls in the beds they occupied; hearing the soft noises from his brothers in the living room. He shifted slightly in his chair, the coffee still working through his system. He heard a slight whimper from his bed, and looked over to see Danielle. Oh, how he felt a pain shoot through his chest just by looking at her. He watched her for a moment, her body slightly shaking from the cold. Donnie stared at her, her ivory skin shining with beads of sweat. She began stirring, tossing her head back and forth; whimpering in pain. His heart began to beat faster, and he stood up to move over to her; she was in pain.

"No . . . no .." Danielle whimpered, her body taunt with pain.

"You're safe. You're safe now." Donnie whispered as he knelt down to her, his voice soft and low for only her to hear.

He watched her behind his large glasses, which he pushed up from falling off. Even blindfolded, she began to relax at the sound of his voice; her body calming slightly by his presence.

"W-where am I?" Danielle asked, her voice small and weak. She turned her head to his voice, hoping to hear him again. She loved the sound of his voice; it had a calming effect on her.

"No one will hurt you. You're safe." Donatello answered, keeping his voice low for her to hear only. He hesitated for a moment before he brushed her hair back. She stilled for a brief second before settling back into the pillow, her voice hummed in a light note. He loved the sound of her voice, especially when he heard her hum. She sounded so lovely; it was like a haunting melody that wouldn't leave his head, he needed to hear her voice again.

"H-hospital?" she asked, turning her head slightly to the sound of his voice.

"No, but you're going to be alright." He answered, sounding sure of himself even though he knew inside she would be sore for a while.

"W-why am I n-not in a h-hospital?" Danielle stuttered, her lips struggling to form a single sentence. He knew it was due to not using her voice within the last few days.

"There was no time. You were bleeding badly, and we couldn't get you to one." Donatello answered, knowing that if he and his brothers were to bring the girls to the hospital, they would be considered freaks and put onto every news station channel and being put into a glass cage to be studied on. He wouldn't risk that, and he wouldn't risk her being injured any further.

"W-what did they do to me? MY EYES!" Danielle shrieked, her hands flying up to her face, feeling the blindfold wrapped around her beautiful eyes. Her fear of being blind shook her to the core; her eyes were precious to her, and she didn't want to lose them, considering that she had many things she still wanted to see.

"Your eyes weren't hurt. They're fine. You need to rest." Donatello soothed her, gently brushing his fingers through her glorious brown hair, feeling her sooth and calm down from her fright. Her labored breathing returned to its slow, steady breaths he became used to. Oh, how he wanted to rip that ridiculous blindfold off her eyes so she could see not only him, but everything in general. He knew that if he did, she would scream and be terrified even more. Donatello continued to run his thick fingers through her hair, the silky strands loosening from being in knots. She was so small beneath him, he was terrified that he might hurt her by accident.

Danielle felt calm every time she heard his voice; she couldn't tell where, but it felt like he was everywhere. He was close, and the feel of him running his fingers through her hair made her feel special and important. She wasn't sure where she was, and she didn't really care that she wasn't in a hospital. All she knew was that it was somewhere safe and warm, but a nagging pulled in the back of her mind. Her sisters ... where were her sisters? Were they with her? Were they alive was the question.

"M-my s-sisters? A-are they-" Danielle tried to ask, her voice parched from not having anything to drink or able to speak much beside screaming in pain.

"Your sisters are here. They're safe as well. Your sisters suffered some injuries, but they're asleep and safe." Donatello knew what she meant, keeping his hand running through her hair to distract her from the pain. He smiled, she was beginning to talk a little more.

"W-who are you?" she asked, her head slightly turning upward to hear his voice, the pillow underneath her shifting to move down to her shoulders.

"Tell me your name." Donatello asked, trying to avoid the question as much as possible, knowing that if he revealed what he was, she might be turned off and become scared of him. He wanted to avoid it as much as possible, but he knew that she would want to know his name soon.

"D-danielle. My name is Danielle." she said, her breathing becoming slower; he could feel that sleep was going to claim her soon. The medication was running its course through her in full force.

"Danielle . . . It's a beautiful name." Donatello said, smiling to himself when he saw her cheeks blush a little flash of pink. She giggled a little before clutching her ribs in pain.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's okay. It just hurts a little." Danielle grimaced, her features tortured in a painful grin. She tried to move onto her side, but Donatello laid his hand onto her shoulder very carefully, keeping her in place.

"Do you need anything?" he asked, worried he might've agitated her injuries further.

"Just something to drink, and maybe a few pain relievers, if you have any." Danielle answered, her body language slightly taunt with pain and tried to get into a comfortable position.

"I'll be right back."

"Wait! Please, tell me your name." she pleaded, wanting to know the name of her savior. Not only that, but she loved his voice; there was some kind of calming effect he had on her, even though she couldn't see him, she could hear that he was genuine person. Oh, if only she knew that he wasn't a person, but a giant, over six foot tall talking turtle who knew ninjitsu and was a genius with computers and anything technological.

"D-Donatello." He answered, stuttering a little for being so nervous around her. He gulped, hoping she wouldn't laugh at his name. But she didn't; he watched her smile at his name, her whole aura seemed to lighten up, knowing the name of her protector.

"Donatello. I like that name; it's Italian right?" Danielle repeated his name, the sound of his name rolling off her tongue sent shivers down his shell and met a warm feeling in his chest and abdomen.

"Yes, but you can call me Don or Donnie." he said, getting up to get her what she needed.

"I like that. Thank you, Donnie." Danielle said, his name on her tongue again. He couldn't stop but smile at her, hearing her say his name was like a godsend. He walked away, looking at the other girls to make sure they were alright. He was about to grab her tea before he turned around and looked back at her form in his bed.

"Don't be afraid. Please, don't be afraid." Donatello pleaded, hoping she would believe him.

"I-I'll try." Danielle answered back, her smile never leaving her face before she fell back into a dreamless sleep. Her body relaxed; he knew she would be safe from the truth. But he knew as well as his brothers that they would need to know the truth about them; for now, he was content with her.

XXX

**Auhtor's Note: Woo hoo! Donnie and Danielle finally get to know each other a little bit. I like this pairing already ^_^ Anyway, I had to put them together first, then the rest will come along. So let me know what you guys think, and I'll be working on the next chapter :-) Reviews are welcomed. **


	7. I Would Never Lie To You

**Author's Note: Alright! Back in the swing of things! We finally get to see some interaction between the turtles and the girls. I'm definitely happy with how the story is performing so far, and I can't thank you guys, who take the time to read and review it, enough for making this awesome. I try not to babble a lot so you guys can read more of the story. Anyway, back to the chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXX

Donatello smiled to himself, finally able to break the ice with Danielle. He walked through the clear curtain that led into the kitchen and began rummaging through the cupboards. He opened the one above the stove, and hoped to find what he needed; he found it! The one tea that only he liked to drink: lavender; it was the only that he simply enjoyed. But he didn't know what kind of tea she would like, so he grabbed the chamomile tea as well as the honey next to the box of green tea leaves. Donatello grabbed the kettle from the top of the stove and filled it halfway with water; he turned the stove on and set the kettle over the burner while grabbing a small tea cup for Danielle to make the tea for her. He couldn't get her out of his head; it was like she was some sort of deity that wouldn't stop haunting his dreams. He didn't know why, it was logically impossible for him to comprehend that he was falling for her; Donnie cared for this beautiful human girl. He didn't really know her, but he wanted to learn as much of her as well as her sisters. He was so engrossed in making the ingredients for the tea that he didn't sense Master Splinter behind him.

"What are you doing, my son?" his father inquired, forcing Donatello out of his thoughts and whirled around in shock. He forgot that their sensei was good at sneaking up on them; no matter how much training they've had over the years, the old rat was still able to get the off guard.

"I-I-I'm making tea." Donnie stuttered, as if he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"I presume it is for one of the young ladies?" his father asked again, watching his intelligent son push his glasses up from falling off and looking down in shame.

"Yes." Donatello answered, his voice quiet and hoping his father would understand that he had deep feelings for her; granted he knew nothing of her, but he wanted to get to know her very well.

"I see. My son, I must ask you this: How could you bring them here? To our home? I figured that Raphael or Michelangelo would be foolish enough to do this, but not you. I must know what your intentions are in this matter." Splinter asked his son, watching the reaction from Donatello's body. It was very rare that he would berate his second youngest son; normally it would be Raphael or Leonardo he would speak like this to, or Michelangelo for doing something foolish and unsafe. But not Donatello, the pacifist of the family; the inventor to everything that they've ever gotten within the years that they've lived in the sewers. The purple-clad turtle had no idea why; no, he did know why. But would his father listen to what he had to say?

"Sensei . . . I honestly can't _think_ of any logical reason why I did it, but I know how I _feel_ in my reason for doing this. I - I feel like ... we've known them for many years, but I ... I know I'm only making the situation worse by having them here." Donatello tried to explain, his mind working faster than his mouth could produce the words. He rubbed his right shoulder, knowing that it was bare without the purple bandage he normally wore; it was as if he were being punished for helping these girls.

"I understand you want to help them, my son. But you know as well as I do that they will not understand what we are. We must remain in the shadows." Splinter preached to Donatello, knowing fully well that his intentions were true and good. But the reality was that they were freaks of nature, and that society wouldn't understand them. He knew how his sons wanted to be accepted by society; why their home was filled with many items from the world above. Their dreams were to be accepted and understandable, but it would only be a dream that they can have.

"I-I-I ... I can't. I can't just stay in the shadows, father. I just ... feel like ... we have a higher purpose than just hiding. I ..." Donatello stuttered, knowing that his father was right but he needed him to acknowledge that this was important to him.

"My son. I sense your frustration." Splinter calmly said, knowing that Donatello was trying his best to keep cool.

"I . . . I need to tell her . . ." Donatello muttered under his breath, knowing that he needed to tell Danielle everything.

"Donatello . . ." Master Splinter warned him, knowing that he needed to keep everything from the girls a secret.

"I can't hide from her. There's something about her that I can't get out of my head. Her spirit ... when she fought against the Foot, I saw a spark in her. I - I felt her, like she was with me. I - I can't explain it." Donnie tried, his mind working fast again.

He heard the kettle whistle, and turned around to pull it away from the burner before leaning forward, gripping the sides of the stove and breathing heavily. Donatello never got upset that much; it was very rare that he lost his temper, let alone, have his emotions get the best of him.

"My son, please understand-"

"I can't! You need to listen for once! I - I can't just let this go! There's something about this girl that I can't get out of my head. She's - argh - She's like a drug to me, and I can't get her out of my head. I know we shouldn't have brought them here, but we had no choice! We couldn't just leave them to die! I don't care about her finding out about what we are! I feel like ... we don't have to hide around them; we can be ourselves around them. I need her to know that I'm not afraid to show myself! Send me to the Ha-Shi, I don't care! Please, just let me tell her about us!" Donatello wailed, his plea bouncing off the walls of their home.

What Donatello didn't expect was Leonardo to come out from the meditation room and watch what was going on between him and Master Splinter. He had never seen his younger brother in this much anguish before; Donnie was always quiet and the mediator between the brothers. This was the first time he had ever let his emotions take over, and it scared Leo.

Donnie looked at his father with unshed tears; his chest heaving from the pressure he had been feeling these last few minutes. He grasped his head before turning around and gasping for air, not understanding why he took his frustration out on his father. Splinter stared at his son's shell, letting the confession sink into his mind. He knew these girls means something to each of his sons; he watched how Raphael took care of the girl in his bed, how careful he was of her injuries and how he wouldn't let his gaze be distracted off of her. Splinter walked up to his son, and gently placed his clawed hand onto his shell, stroking the umber colored shell to calm him down.

"My son. It is alright. I understand your pain; the need to let everything go. You have my permission to tell her, but keep it brief. When I feel it is ready to let them all know about our origins, I will let you tell them. But for now, do not let her know everything about us." Splinter sighed, trying to keep his son from going anymore further into the void of frustration.

Donatello sighed and turned around to face his father, taking his glasses off before wiping away the tears his eyes threatened to let loose. He sighed through his nose, and placed his glasses back on before returning to finish making the tea for Danielle. He picked up the cup of hot tea and a couple of pain relievers into his hands before turning to his sensei. He bowed slightly, muttering his apology and walking back to the bedroom where the girls were sleeping.

Leonardo waited until his brother left the kitchen before approaching his father. He walked up to him, his arms crossed in front of his plastron as he thought about what Donatello said. He knew that his sensei knew about something, but he didn't know what.

"Sensei . . . why do I get the feeling you know something about the girls that we don't know?" Leonardo questioned, watching with curious eyes as Splinter turned around to look at his oldest son. He had a particular gleam in his black eyes; something that only Leo could see very rarely. It was as if their father was keeping a secret from his sons, and it had to do with these innocent girls.

"When the time is right, I will let you know."

"Dad, the girl with the black hair . . . I've seen her before. I feel like I've known her all my life. What aren't you telling us?" Leo questioned again, trying to understand the situation.

"Hmm. Such times call for such minds to think alike." Splinter mumbled as he walked back to his meditation room, leaving Leonardo to look at his father with a confused face.

XXX

Donatello came back to Danielle, who was more awake than she was earlier. Even with the injuries and the blindfold on, she was stunning and beautiful. She leaned more up in the bed, the pillow cushioned in between her shoulders. She heard the sound of footsteps, and stiffened a little bit, wondering if Donatello had returned to keep her company again.

"It's only me. I've brought back your tea." Donatello said, not wanting to startle the young girl as he took his seat next to the bed she occupied.

He held the tea in one hand, and helped her put the pain relievers in her hand. She felt the pills in her palm, and brought them into her mouth. He gave her the cup of tea, and helped her drink the tea. She drank the hot liquid carefully, letting the taste touch her tastebuds like a silky blanket of warmth. She knew the flavor - lavender with chamomile. It was a taste she always wanted to try, and it was very unique.

"D-do you like it?" Donatello asked her, watching her slowly drink the tea he made her. He admired her; it was the aura that she carried, her her smile; her complete trust in him was enough for him to believe that he could trust her.

"It's really good, Donnie. I've always wanted to try lavender and chamomile tea." Danielle answered, her smile reaching her face.

"I'm glad you like it." he said, smiling at her happiness.

"Donnie, could you answer me something?" Danielle asked, turning her head to hear his voice. He swallowed nervously, knowing that she would want to know why she was here.

"I'll try my best ... to answer your question." Donatello said, pushing his glasses up on the ridge of his nose before he settled himself into his seat.

"Tell me, where are we? I hear voices, are we in Brooklyn? Queens?" Danielle asked as she held the tea cup in her small hands within her lap.

"No, not Brooklyn or Queens." Donnie answered, the lump in his throat growing with every minute ticking by.

"Are we still in New York? Donnie, please I need to know where we are. I'm a little scared." Danielle quivered, her little body shaking slightly. He watched for a moment, watching her patiently. He couldn't lie to her; he _wouldn't_ lie. He would tell her the truth about everything.

"Y-y-yes, we are still in New York, but we're underneath the city." Donatello confessed, waiting for her to take in the information he just delivered to her.

"Why are we -"

"Because me and my brothers are different from everyone else. We are . . . not normal." Donatello muttered, his voice lower than normal. He knew that his family was different from society, that they weren't human by any means. But would he share her that information?

"Why do you live down here? Why are you here?" Dani asked, her voice piqued with curiosity.

"Me and my brothers . . . we were babies when we came here. Our father, our sensei; he raised us to be who we are. We . . . never wanted anyone to judge us, so we kept to ourselves for much of our childhood. We wanted to feel accepted. And when you four came into our lives, we felt like we wouldn't have to be judged." Donatello said, wringing his hands together in nervousness.

He watched Danielle sink the information in, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. It was like they were a secret family that no one was to know. She had no idea that there were people living underneath the city, and it scared her. She was so glued into her own world with her sisters and school that she never realized how much these people have outcasted by society.

"I don't know what to believe." Danielle said, her mind going through the details; she wanted to see this young man so badly.

"It's the truth, Danielle. I would never lie to you, I promise." Donatello said, hoping she would not judge him at all.

He reached out, his three fingered hand going to grab the cup from her hands when her fingers touch the back of his hand. She felt rough skin, almost like scales. She gasped, and he froze.

"_Oh no, please don't judge me now. Please don't think of me as a freak_." Donatello thought to himself, his mind analyzing everything that was going through his mind. He was waiting for the scream.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Ha ha ha! I have to stop somewhere :) I know I'm horrible for having such an awesome cliffhanger at the best part. Reviews are welcomed :D **


	8. Acceptance or Not?

**Author's Note: Hello, darlings! I know I'm mean for leaving you on a major cliffhanger in the last chapter, and I'm sorry. Not really :P I want to keep you guys on the edge of your seats - well whatever you sit on lol. Anyway, I will introduce the other three girls in this chapter. I know I've kind of neglected them a little bit, but I wanted to kind of solidify Donatello and Danielle's relationship a little bit first considering that he is the hardest to work on when it comes to character building a relationship with another character. I can't forget April and Vern too, so they'll be making an appearance in here as well. And I'm ranting again :P **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

April and Vern were worried about the girls. Three days. Three long goddamn days they've been missing, and no sign of them. April and Vern have been working around the clock ever since they disappeared on Friday night. They've gone to the police station several times, asked people who were entering and exiting the subway station that was being held hostage on what happened. Both reporter and cameraman had gotten little information on what happened that night. But April wasn't going to give up on her friends; she had known them since they were little, used to babysit them when they were in elementary school. They supported her with her superhero story and she wasn't going to give up on them.

She sat in the newsroom with Vern looking weary as ever. Both had gotten little sleep and were working on the next story Thompson had assigned for them. The woman had no sense of remorse for what had been going on this past weekend. All she cared about was getting the best stories onto the evening show and see how the reviews looked. Vern came in with a cup of coffee in his hand, extending the pipping cup to her.

"Here, got you coffee." Vern said, his eyes weary with little sleep as well.

"Thanks. Have you heard anything?" April asked, taking a long sip of the coffee, thankful for the hot liquid rushing down her throat to keep her awake.

"No. I've checked with everyone that was within the area that night including the police that were involved in rescuing the hostages. But no one had seen them." Vern answered, sitting next to her on the desk, looking down at the floor.

"We need to keep looking."

"I know, O'Neil. But who are we going to go ask next?" Vern asked, knowing that he didn't want to give up on his search for the girls. He cherished those girls like they were his nieces. He didn't know what had happened to them, and all he was worried about was making sure they were home safe.

"O'Neil! Fenwick! You guys in my office, now!" Bernadette Thompson yelled, the heavyset manager grabbing their attention. They turned around to see their boss, looking at them with annoyance.

Both April and Vern looked at each other, then got up to talk to their boss in her office. It was going to be a long day, unless they could convince her to help with the search.

XXXX

"_She touched my hand. Oh, GOD! She's thinking I'm a freak. She's afraid of us now. Please, please, please! Don't judge me this way!_" Donatello panicked in his mind, his frantic thoughts going like a hundred miles an hour. He shouldn't have touched her, but he needed to reassure her that he wasn't lying to her. He felt like he needed to be open with her; it was like his soul was dancing on pins and needles. He prayed that she wouldn't scream.

Danielle gasped as she felt his hand; it was large and rough, almost like scales ran across the back of his hand. She rested her palm on the back of his hand, and stroked it gently, feeling the rough contents of his hand. She glided her fingers over his knuckles, her mouth open with what she was feeling. Her eyes may have been obscured at the moment, but that didn't matter. She knew not to judge people for their appearances, only what was on the inside of a person was what really mattered. It was what Shimizu-sensei taught her and her sisters over the years. Donatello was shaking, fearing for the screams and the words to fly out of her mouth. But his heart stopped when he saw her smile; she wasn't afraid? Why wasn't she screaming?! She took his large hand into her two small hands, and felt his fingers.

"_Three fingers? Oh, my. No wonder why he didn't want me to know." _Danielle thought to herself as she felt his hand with her fingers, loving the texture of her soft velvet skin against his rough scaly skin.

He stared at wonder, his rational and irrational thoughts colliding with one another; he was trying to understand what was going on. She took his hand and brought it up to her uninjured cheek, rubbing against the texture with a smile on her face. Was she accepting him? Oh, please, let it be acceptance.

"Donnie? I'm not afraid." Danielle whispered, the words reaching into his heart, his mind, his soul. What shocked him even more was when she took her arms and gently wrapped them around his neck, and laying her head in the crook of his neck, her soft and gentle breath ghosting his skin, sending goosebumps all over him.

He sat there frozen, his mind completely blank at what occurred. She had accepted him. HIM! A giant mutated ninja turtle; a freak that no one but his family would understand, and here was this young human girl that had accepted him. And she didn't need eyes to see him; he didn't want to think about that now. All he was happy for was that she wasn't afraid of him. He wrapped his arms around her, and carefully hugged her to his plastron, minding her injuries. Donnie smiled, and let out a shaky breath he didn't realize he was holding in for so long.

"Donnie? Are you alright?" Danielle asked sleepily, her breath ghosting his neck again.

"Y-y-yeah. I'm o-okay." Donatello stuttered, his body shaking with happiness. He leaned down to see her smile, and felt her soft breath ghosting his neck, the goosebumps never leaving him. Her breath became slower and deeper; the girl had fallen asleep in his arms. He carefully pulled her away from his body, and laid her back in his bed, pulling the thick comforter over her, and sat back. Maybe everything would be alright for him and his family. He sat in his chair and looked around the room, checking the other three girls before closing his eyes. He finally found acceptance, and that's all that mattered to him.

XXXX

April and Vern sat in Thompson's office, glancing at their boss, wondering why they were called into the office. April was antsy, the caffeine from the coffee working through her system like adrenaline. Vern sat patiently, knowing how Thompson like to keep everyone on their toes, no matter how busy or slow the office was.

"Alright, you two. I want to know what's with the sleepy eyes? And don't tell me you're not tired at all because I can read through your bullshit. Now fess up." Thompson said, looking between the team.

"Alright, here's the deal. Friday night, me and April went to pick up Lauren and her sisters." Vern broke down, knowing the truth had to come out sooner than later.

"The four sister who help their aunt at the hair salon in Brooklyn right? How are they doing? I haven't seen them in quite a while." Thompson asked, receiving a nod from the both of them.

Both April and Vern looked at each other then back at their boss, their gazes were sad. Bernadette was wondering what the hell was going on; both were never this quiet, and now she knew that something was wrong.

"Did something happen that you're not telling me?" she asked, watching between the team in front of her.

"They went missing Friday night." April said, watching Thompson look at them like they were crazy.

"I'm sorry what?" Thompson asked, not believing what her ears were saying.

"We were in a traffic jam in uptown Brooklyn, when people started running and screaming. The girls wanted to try and help me with my story, so they ran out of the van and took off. We tried to stop them, but we couldn't catch up to them. We've been trying to find them all weekend." April answered, knowing that she was partially at fault for this. Bernadette just looked at her like she hit Big Foot in the stomach. She couldn't believe it; those girls were always polite and funny when they came by and visited. She was . . . there was no word to describe what she was feeling.

"Alright, you know what? Here's what were gonna do." Thompson said, letting April and Vern know what was going on.

XXX

A week had passed since the incident at the substation, and the girls were slowly recovering. Danielle and Donatello still talked to each other when he was on duty to watch the girls, but other than that, all was quiet. It was Leonardo's turn to watch them; he was cleaning the wrapping on the holders of his katana, carefully cleaning each and every wrap on it. He had noticed that Donatello was a little more up and cheerful in his attitude, but other than that, not much had changed. He heard a moan from his bed, and looked to see Lauren stirring from her unconscious state. He slowly got up and walked over to sit on the edge of his bed, looking down at the beauty that had occupied it. She moved her limbs slowly, trying to keep the joints from locking up on her.

"H-hello?" Lauren asked, hoping someone would hear her.

"Hi." Leonardo said softly, his voice startling Lauren; the girl didn't expect him to be so close to her. She tried to sit up, but he softly laid his hand on her shoulder, easing her back down on the bed.

"Where am I?" she asked, trying to make sense of why she couldn't see and why she was sore.

"You're safe. We brought you to our home to heal." Leo answered; he wanted to keep it simple and short. He may have had Donnie break the ice with Danielle, but he was still uneasy about the situation. This girl . . . he knew her from somewhere, but where? It was like she was in a dream he had and now he couldn't place her.

"W-who are you?" Lauren tried to ask, but her voice crackled on her. She rubbed her throat, trying to soothe the pain. Leo debated on telling her his name, but he watched when Donatello broke the ice between him and Danielle; maybe he shouldn't be too cautious about these girls, especially Lauren. But he would keep his guard up for now.

"My name is Leonardo. I'm a friend. You should rest." he replied, sensing another presence behind him. He turned to see Raphael, his bulking frame was not hard to miss.

"I'll take over." Raph said, his body taunt with agitation. Mikey had annoyed him again and he took his frustration out on his punching bags again.

"How many did you break?" Leo asked as he helped Lauren get settled back into bed.

"Two." Raph answered shortly.

"Wow. Surprised." Leo said, brushing some of Lauren's black hair away from her face. The smell of her hair was familiar. He bent down slightly and breathed deeply. His blue eyes widened behind his mask, he knew that scent from anywhere. Lilies, but not just any lilies. Midnight lilies with a slight hint of jasmine. He remembered that scent from when he was a little tot, but he forgot all about it when he grew up. He stared at the girl, his body taunt with recognition. She was from a dream he had years ago, and here she was, lying in his bed. He would have to talk to sensei about this.

"What?" Raph asked, watching his older brother react to the girl. Leo didn't say a word, but up and left abruptly, his gear colliding with his plastron swiftly.

He shrugged it off, and looked down at Rachel. She had been in and out every now and then, she rarely woke up. He sat close to her and watched her sleep, not really knowing what to do for a moment. He went to reach out and touch her when she moved; he jerked his hand back, like he had been electrocuted with a live wire. She moved slightly, and whimpered before stirring from sleep.

"W-what? What the hell?" Rachel muttered, realizing that she couldn't open her eyes.

"Easy, you need to stay still." Raph said, watching her react to his voice.

"Who are you?" Rachel asked, her voice louder than intended.

"Relax, I'm not going to hurt you."

"What's your name?" the girl asked, trying to get answers out of the large turtle.

"Raphael. Just call me Raph."

"Name's Rachel, but I'm Rach to you, grouchpants."

"Whoa, hey. No need to get all hot and rude, missy."

"What did you do to me and my sisters? Why can't I - AHH!" Rachel asked as she tried to sit up, but clutched her shoulder tightly, feeling the pain spike and shoot everywhere throughout her shoulder and body. Raph got up and sat next to her, his large hand encasing her shoulder and easing her back onto the bed. She hissed in pain and felt the softness of the pillow behind her, and breathed harshly through gritted teeth.

"We saved you from that Foot attack. You and your sisters are alright. Don't move your shoulder, or you'll make it worse." Raph grumbled, watching her react to his answer. She muttered something but he couldn't make it out.

"Thanks. Now why am I wearing a blindfold?" Rachel said as she settled back on the bed.

"Why do you ask so many goddamn questions?" Raphael asked, frowning at the girl.

"Why do you have to be a stubborn asshat?" Rachel came back, her lips frowning into a scowl. He smirked at the comeback, she was definitely a spitfire; he liked her attitude, but not directed at him.

"Narcissistic bitch."

"Backstabbing cockbite."

He stayed silent; he never heard anyone talk like that to him. Well, only when he and Leo would go at each other, but even then, they never went that far at calling each other names like that. He didn't know what to say to her; he was dumbfounded.

"Got nothing to say, asshat?" Rachel smirked, knowing she might've hit a nerve with him.

"Just shut up and go back to sleep, you narcissistic bitch." Raphael growled, watching her gap her mouth open then shut it and tried going back to sleep. He waited a moment, watching her breathe in and out slowly; her body calm and relaxed. He gently stroked her shoulder, hoping she wouldn't wake up; he had to admit, he liked her spirit. He ran this thick fingers through her hair, admiring the colors in it. He never understood why humans took the time to take care of their hair; he never really understood why they even had hair in the first place, humans were indeed strange to him. But there was something about Rachel that he liked; beside her spirit, he liked her attitude, she was very blunt about how she felt.

He smirked and settled back into his seat; he was in for a treat if these girls saw how they really looked like.

XXX

Michelangelo got the next shift, and he didn't mind. He got to read his comics and eat pizza as long as he was quiet about it, and he checked on the girls every now and then. The orange-clad turtle was curious, he wanted to know more about the girls. He was always the more social of the four brothers, but yet, he was also the instigator sometimes. He heard a shuffling in his bed, and looked over to see Eri move around a bit. The young girl tried to move her leg, but she felt pain shoot through her, and she hissed in response. Mikey looked over and watched for a moment in fascination. He was excited; he had a girl in his bed, and smiled at the thought. He only wished she wasn't injured so he could lay in bed with her.

"Oh, man. Why does everything hurt so much?" Erica grumbled as she tried to sit up and move her leg, but pain skyrocketed through her system, forcing her to stop and clutch at her leg and ribs.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa dudette. Chill, you like, need to lay back down." Michelangelo said, quickly jumping out of the chair and ushering over to her bedside. His large hands laid on her tiny shoulders, and helped her settle back down into bed.

"Hey, who are you?" Eri asked, feeling the turtle help her back into bed.

"I'm Mikey. Well, Michelangelo is my real name, but I like being called Mikey. How about you, dudette?" the young orange-clad turtle asked, his excitement showing in his voice.

"I'm Erica, but I'm usually called Eri." she answered, a smile touching her face.

"Eri . . . eh, it's not that great of a nickname. I prefer Erica or dudette." Mikey said, smirking at her reaction to him saying her name or the new nickname he created for her.

"Dudette? Oh, man. You must be from California or you're a total surfer dude." Erica laughed, her smile never leaving her face.

"Nah, I'm just a dude who likes to skateboard and eat pizza. So, what happened to you guys? Can you remember anything?" Michelangelo asked, never leaving her side and watching her carefully.

She was gorgeous, despite being injured; she had strawberry blonde hair, well almost. Her hair was blonde then faded into pink halfway down her strands. He actually liked this girl, she seemed genuine and funny in her own way. She thought for a moment, but her mind came up blank. She coudn't remember much of what happened to her and her sisters; hell, she didn't even know where they were.

"Where are we?" Eri asked, confusion rung through her voice, making the young turtle look at her in pity.

"We brought you to our secret headquarters, so you guys can rest us. But we have to keep it a secret, you know, so bad guys can't find us." Mikey said, trying to make her smile again. After hearing this, Eri laughed; genuinely laugh at his explanation, but if only she could see him use his hands to make it more dramatic and elaborate. She coughed, and rubbed her ribs a little bit, the pain shooting sharply but not as bad as it had been earlier.

"Sorry." Mikey said sadly, knowing he shouldn't be making her laugh so hard that it would cause more pain to her injuries.

"It's okay. I like listening to you, you're really funny. You know, I was thinking. Are you into comics?" Eri asked, knowing she opened a can of worms that shouldn't have been opened. He smiled, and ran over to his seat before coming back to her, and reading the titles to her.

"New Avengers #1; Silver Sentry special edition; you name it, I got it!" Mikey said excitedly, making her giggle in knowing he was a huge comic reader like she was. She stiffled a yawn behind her hand and felt the drowsiness kick into her again.

"Alright, dudette, I think I've kept you up long enough. You gotta get some sleep." the orange-clad turtle said as he helped cover up with his large blanket, careful of her leg that was leveled up on the pillow.

"Mikey?"

"Yeah?"

Eri reached up and placed a hand on his arm, not noticing the scales or the rather rough skin there. She patted his arm and smile warmly before settling back into the pillow.

"Thank you for looking out for me." Eri whispered as she fell into a dreamless sleep, her hand slowly slipping off his arm and back onto her midsection. He stared at her for a moment, his eyes wide with shock. She touched him; she touched his arm! He smiled widely, his grin never leaving his face as he sat back down and did a little happy dance while reading his comics. He was so happy and giddy that he didn't realize Leo was standing there, looking at him confused.

"What are you so happy about?" Leo asked, rubbing his eyes before looking back at his youngest brother.

"She likes me, dude. The dudette likes me. She touched my arm, man. I really, really like her, Leo." Mikey said, trying not to get too excited or he would wake the girls up from their slumber.

"I know, Mikey. But we really don't know them that well." Leo said, walking over to his bed and sitting on the edge while looking down at Lauren. His large hand brushing a few pieces of hair away from her face.

"Did you talk to sensei? About your girl?" Mikey asked, jerking his head over to the girl Leo took care of.

"She's not my girl, Mikey. But I tried talking to him, and all he said was such times call for such minds alike. I don't even know what he meant by that." Leo answered as he stared down at Lauren, his eyes roaming her features. The gashes that she once had deeply were fading into small scratches.

"Leo . . . you know we have to tell them. We have to show them who we are." Mikey said solemnly, looking down Eri before looking at his big brother.

He knew there was no choice; he knew deep in his chest that they would need to come clean about who they really were, even if it meant going against his sensei's order and going into the Ha-Shi. He knew there was no other way around it, but there was a nagging pull in his brain. Would Lauren be accepting of him as Danielle was to Donatello? How would the girls react to their appearances?

"We'll tell them tomorrow." Leo said, looking down at the girl in his bed.

If only it was easier said than done.

XXXXX

**Author's Note: Phew! This is the longest chapter I've written! -face plants into the floor- I'm alive folks! Anyway, I had to put in April and Vern to keep them in the story as well. So hopefully the guys will tell their girls the truth about them. Do you really want to know what happens? Find out in the next chapter! I love cliffhangers :-) Reviews are always welcomed. **


	9. We Have To Tell Them

**Author's Note: Mwahahahaha! Hello again, darlings. I know I'm so evil with my cliffhangers, but I have to keep you guys entertained and on the edge of your seats somehow. I'm working on trying to make the chapters longer now and more in depth with what's going on. I hope you guys keep up with following me and reviewing as well. I'll try to get at least a chapter or two at a time up. Within the last week, I've already gotten eight chapters and working on more as I type :) No more ranting. On with the story. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs.**

XXX

April couldn't believe she was doing this; her nor Vern wanted to do this, but they had little choice in the matter. Both Vern and April had to make a news report live in downtown Brooklyn, where the girls disappeared over a week ago. She was never nervous but her stomach was in knots. She stood in the middle of uptown Brooklyn, her yellow jacket blowing swiftly in the cool breeze.

"You sure you want to do this?" Vern asked, bracing his camera on his shoulder while looking through his scope in the camera.

"You heard what Thompson said. We have to make it known so we can help find the girls faster." April groaned as she cleared her throat to get ready for her live report.

"I got a bad feeling about this. But, whatever she says goes I guess." Vern sighed as he settled his camera on his shoulder and got ready to film.

"Okay in five, four, three, two, one ..." Vern counted then came quiet as the red light on the camera came on and April knew that she was live.

"Hi guys, this is April O'Neil from Channel Six news, giving you the up-to-date on the missing girls. Over a week ago at this subway station here in uptown Brooklyn, four high school students went missing merely moments after a hostage takeover occurred here. The names of these young high school girls are Lauren, Rachel, Danielle and Erica Yuzuka; if anyone has any information regarding the disappearance of these young girls, please contact your local police station and Channel Six news station. Back to you, Chris." April reported, her heart in her throat as she gave her best report on the four girls.

When the red light on the camera went off, Vern took the camera from his shoulder and looked at April. He knew that she was upset about the girls missing, but he knew that the both of them need to get some sleep. He walked up to April, and hugged her close to his chest; he felt her shake as her sobs started to come up and break out from her chest.

"It's okay, O'Neil. We'll find them, I promise. We'll find those girls." Vern said, trying to calm her down, but he was only kidding himself. He knew he was just as scared as she was in not finding the girls. He be damned to hell if anything happened to them.

XXX

A business man sat in his office as he watched the report that was on the TV regarding the missing disappearance of the girls. The pictures of each of them were displayed on the screen as April gave her report; the man looking with interest at the screen, knowing there was something about those girls that made his interest piqued very high. He reached over to the phone on his desk, and dialed a number while putting the receiver to his ear before hearing a voice pick up on the other.

"I have a favor for you."

XXX

Splinter had just finished watching the news that had displayed the pictures of each of the girls, and he stared at the screen with wide eyes, not believing what he had just saw. The names of these girls rang through his ears; their faces engraved in his memory; oh sweet Kami, he now knew who these girls were; the same girls that were from the dreams that his sons claimed they remembered. He sighed, knowing that he could never keep this a secret anymore; he knew that his sons as well as the girls in their care needed to know the truth.

"I knew that this day would come; I just didn't think it would be this soon." Splinter muttered, knowing that he had to explain everything from the beginning.

"I believe you and I both knew this day would come, my koibito." A shy, feminine voice said as he turned around to see a very familiar face.

XXX

The four turtle brothers sat at the kitchen table, pondering and debating about whether they were ready to tell the girls the truth about themselves. Leonardo and Raphael sat at one side of the table, Donatello at the head and Michelangelo at the other side of the table. They were nervous, anxiety pulsing through each of them. They were second guessing themselves, wondering if the girls could handle the truth about who they were, let alone their appearances.

"So, how do we go with this?" Leo asked, looking at his brothers with concern in his royal blue eyes.

"We just tell them, and keep the blindfolds on. That's it, they don't need to know we're freaks." Raphael grumbled sinking down to lay on his large arms.

"Raph, you know we can't do that. We have to tell them." Leo said, knowing that there was no other choice.

"Besides, if we tell them what we really are, and show them that we mean no harm to them; We can show them who we are, and not hide." Michelangelo pleaded, his baby blue eyes wide with hope.

"The probability of them not being scared by our appearances is 2.00004%. The chances of them freaking out by how we look - 120%." Donatello calculated, his green eyes sad with false hope, but maybe he could look past that and let Danielle see him for who he really was.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, brainiac." Raphael grumbled, glaring at his younger brother.

Leonardo sighed heavily, and glanced over to their den where the girls were sitting. They managed to get all four girls out of their beds, and were now sitting on the couch made out of pizza boxes. Each girl was shifting slightly; they were glad that they were all alive and together, but they were nervous. Their auras radiated off of their bodies, and sending waves of nervousness over to the turtles. It was as if the atmosphere was made of pins and needles, not sure when the pins will drop to break the silence that stretched throughout the lair. God, this was a mistake in its course, but what choice did they have? They rescued them; saved these beautiful girls from being killed in cold blood; tended to their injuries and began to open up slowly to them. Donnie was the one who opened up the most; he seemed happier and more carefree as of late. Mikey was more laid back and calm, which was a surprise to everyone; and Raphael was not as brooding as he normally would be. Even Leo ... he seemed less uptight about everything; he even allowed Michelangelo and Raphael to fight each other longer than normal.

"Guys, we owe them an explanation. We need to tell them." Leonardo said, his tone commanding and final. He looked at each of his brothers, knowing how nervous they were for they didn't want to be judged. Leo and Raph could handle the rejection; Mikey would need some explaining on why he would be rejected; it was Donnie that Leo was more worried about. Don had ever been able to handle rejection before; he may have been the smartest of the four, but he was also the most emotional as well. He knew how emotional he would get, especially after seeing him go off on sensei, which was a rare sight indeed. He got up as well as the other three and slowly walked over to the den where the girls were sitting nervously but patiently.

XXX

Lauren sat still, even though she was extremely nervous about what was going on. When Leonardo came to wake her, she was surprised to hear from him let alone speak to him. He had told her that he had a surprise for her as well as her sister; hopefully it would be taking off these ridiculous blindfolds they were forced to wear. She didn't understand why they still had them on, but she would play along for now. She and her sister were trying to stay still, but the anticipation was eating up at her nerves. She heard footsteps, and knew it was Leonardo; a small smile tugged on her face, but quickly vanished when she heard more than one set of footsteps walking towards her and her sister.

"L-Leo?" Lauren stuttered, her voice nervous about who was actually coming towards them.

"It's okay, it's just me and my brothers." Leonardo said, his voice making Lauren calm. He was all nervous; he wouldn't show it, but he was extremely nervous about showing himself and his brothers to the girls in front of them.

"When can we take these stupid things off?" Rachel growled as she tried to remove the blindfold from her eyes; she gasped sharply as she felt a hand wrap around both her wrists.

"We'll tell you when we decide, creampuff." Raphael smirked, keeping his hand around her wrists as he felt her struggle a little in his grasp.

"Who are you calling a creampuff, you limp-noodled -" Rachel started to say until she heard a loud voice.

"ENOUGH!" Splinter yelled as he gotten the attention of all four of his sons as well as the attention of the four girls sitting down on the couch.

"That is enough, Raphael. I will speak to these young ladies." Splinter said as he curled his tail and smacked his volatile son in the back of the head before walking to stand in front of the four girls.

He looked at each of them closely, noticing how they have all changed within the last ten years or so. It has seemed so long ago that he first encountered them with their sensei as infants. He watched them grow up to little girls who had no care in the world as long as they were around his sons. But it all changed one day when they went to school, and both he and Shimizu felt it was best to keep them apart until the time was right. He had let this go on long enough, and it was time for them to come face to face with one another.

"Who ... who are you?" Lauren asked, not recognizing the new voice that had just shouted throughout the home of wherever they were.

"I am the father to these four boys who you each have spoken to." Splinter said, he wanted to keep their curiosity up at attention.

"What's your name, old man?" Rachel said, growling that she was being talked to in riddles. Rachel felt a slap hard at her uninjured shoulder, and groaned in pain. She knew that slap from anywhere; it was their sensei.

"Rachel, you should know better than to talk to your elders that way." A female voice said, making all four girls smile happily.

"SENSEI!" All four girls exclaimed, happy that their mother was here at last.

"Yes, your mother and I have known each other for a long time." Splinter said as he looked at the girls with a smile on his aged face.

"So, um . . . could we . . .?" Danielle asked, fidgeting in her seat hoping to see after being blindfolded for so long.

"Yes, but you will do it one at a time." Splinter said as he watched the girls listen to his instructions. They sat in silence, heavy silence for a moment, wondering who would be the first to take off their blindfold.

"How about -"

"W-wait, sensei! I-I-I forgot to do something." Donatello stuttered, all eyes were on him as he cleared his throat and went over to kneel in front of Danielle.

It shocked Splinter that Donatello would be the first to interrupt him, let alone kneel in front of a young girl. He was shaking, visibly shaking; Donnie had no idea what he was getting himself into. He felt that he should be the one to take the blindfold off of Danielle, let alone, have her be the first one to see him as well as his family. He took a deep breath, and reached down towards his utility belt, digging through the pocket until he pulled out a pair of large black glasses and held them in one hand. He reached behind her head, and slowly worked the knot of the blindfold, feeling it shift and untangle beneath his fingers. The knot have way, and he slowly unwrapped the blindfold from her eyes, letting the purple material uncoil and fall into her lap. Donatello gasped loudly, staring into the most beautiful set of eyes he had ever seen. Danielle's eyes were beautiful! Marvelous! No words could describe him how lovely her eyes shone; bright teal green eyes stared ahead, but he knew her vision would be blurry without her glasses. The young turtle gulped, and brushed her bangs from her eyes, his hand shaking so badly.

"I-I-I brought your glasses for you when we rescued you. I-I-I noticed they were broken, s-so I fixed them as best as I could f-for you." Donatello stuttered as he brought her glasses from his hand and placed them in her lap. He watched as she fumbled with her hands in her lap, and felt her glasses in her fingertips. She smiled brightly, and slowly unfolded them while bringing them to her face. Before she could place them on her face, though, he gently stilled her hands with his, and waited for her to respond.

"D-Donnie?"

"I-I-I need to tell you something, Danielle. I-I need you to . . . promise me one thing." Donnie stuttered, trying to come up with the courage to ask her; plead to her that she wouldn't be afraid.

"Do you remember w-when I said to not be afraid? That me and my brother are ... different?" he asked Danielle as he watched her nod her head in silence.

"Yes." Danielle answered, her voice so hauntingly beautiful that he couldn't stand to be away but he needed to hear her say it.

"I need you to promise me . . . that you won't . . . scream or run away ... or um - uh . .. call us names? W-will you promise me?"Donatello pleaded, his green eyes boring into her clouded teal eyes, hoping that she wouldn't run away, praying to every deity in existence that she would be just as accepting to see him with her eyes as she was accepting without them.

The tone in his voice made her heart quench; she knew that he was different from what she felt with her hand. But she had no idea how different he was as a person, let along a completely different species in general. She had trusted him so far with her; he took care of her, healed her, spoke to her, and she wouldn't let appearances get to her, no matter how different he was.

"I promise, Donnie." Danielle said, smiling blindly at the young turtle who knelt down in front of her as she began to put her glasses on her face.

XXXX

**Author's Note: I'm sorry guys, but this is getting too good for me as well as for you :P I have to put a cliffhanger somewhere, and I've been neglecting to post this up for a few days due to being back at work. So I hope you guys enjoy the chapter and get ready for the next chapter to be up soon. Reviews are welcome! **


	10. What The Hell Is Going On!

**Author's Note: Hello again darlings! I keep putting these cliffhangers up so you can keep coming back for more! Hahaha! I know you guys are anxious for how the girls will react to the turtles, and it's finally here! I apologize for keeping you waiting, but it was totally worth it. And now, onward with the chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXXX

To say that she was nervous was an understatement; she didn't have words to explain how she was feeling. Danielle knew that the moment she began talking to Donatello over a week ago in their home, she knew there was something different about him. She knew he was different when she felt his hand touch hers and she felt his in appreciation. How could she not realize that he was different from her when she never knew how different he really was? When he made her promise not to scream, she knew right then and there that he was shy as well as a bit ashamed. Was he ashamed on his appearance that he didn't want her to see him? It was bound to happen and she knew it as well. Danielle was so trusting of him, even though she didn't know him that well; she wanted, no needed this closure with him. It had been too long since she had been able to see, and she needed to see him so badly. She needed to see him for who he really was, and not have some visual inside her mind to tell her what his appearance was

Danielle slowly felt his hands slip away from her wrists, and she slid on her large glasses to adjust her vision of her new environment. She rubbed her eyes for a moment, trying to get the sleep away from her eyes, and blinked several times before squinting slightly at him. She felt her teal eyes adjust to her returning vision, and she felt them widen as large as saucers to what she was seeing in front of her. She gasped softly as she saw Donatello for the first time, knowing that he was different but she had no idea how different he really was.

Donatello waited as she took in his appearance, waiting and dreading the scream that he knew would follow up shortly. Danielle took his features in, letting them sink into her vivid vision. Olive green was his skin color, and she knew noticed that he had rough bumps all over him - scales, and each one was a different size and shape from one another. She noticed he wore armor, like parts of a samurai warrior's armor on his shoulder, forearm and around his waist and legs. She also took into appearance that he had on technological trinkets - extension cords hanging off of a strap he had on his shoulder that was holding up some kind of device on his shell. His shell! He was a turtle! But it wasn't those features that caught her attention - his face! It was his face that caught her attention the most. He wore glasses; large, oversized glasses that had been taped up in the middle to keep them together; his face sporting a purple bandana that wrapped around his eyes and had twin tails behind his head. He had a slight muzzle that connected his lips and nose; his eyes - holy god, his eyes! She tried to see them, but it was hard to see with his glasses in the way. He wore a pair of goggles on his forehead; headphones around his neck as well as a beaded necklace. He was tall, much taller than her, no doubt about that. She took all of his appearance in and both logical and illogical came to a realization. Oh my God - he was a turtle! A talking turtle who dressed like a ninja?! This was the same person who took care of her? This was a joke, right?

"Um - well? What do you think?" Donatello asked, stuttering slightly as he was anticipating the scream to crawl out of her throat. His brothers were anticipating it as well, all three bracing for her to scream and alarm her sisters.

"You - you're a turtle? A-a-a talking . . . turtle?" Danielle asked, not believing what she was seeing. Her logical mindset was kicking in, tell her that this wasn't real; that he was wearing a costume to make himself look good. But her heart knew better; she knew that this was really him, and that he was just as terrified as she was, neither not knowing how to approach this head on.

"Y-y-yeah. I am a talking . . . turtle." Donnie answered lamely, his eyes lowering slightly from her.

"Well, technically, you're a species of turtle - box turtle, right?" Danielle asked again, hoping to hear the truth from him.

Donatello couldn't speak, his throat tightened and formed a lump, allowing his speech to still into quietness. He nodded again, his eyes looking at her sadly but briefly, as if he knew he shouldn't be looking at her, let along having her look at him. He was ashamed of himself; he knew better than to let a human look at him. He knew all his life that he would be different, and he knew that everyone wouldn't understand.

"_Stupid idea, Donatello. You knew it was a bad - wait, is she touching my face? What is she doing?_" Donatello thought to himself as he felt her hands on his face, touching him softly.

Danielle was taking him in, soaking is appearance in as if she felt that her vision would disappear on her any second. It felt like a dream, but she knew deep in her soul that it wasn't a dream. She breathed deeply and caressed his rough face. Her hands delicately took his face, and gently traced the small scales on him; his eyes widening to the point he felt that they would pop out of his head. She traced his jawline, and looked into his eyes, though the glasses obscured her from seeing what color they were.

"May I?" she asked as she watched him nod in silence, and she took his glasses off his face gasping at the color of his eyes. She traced the edges of his purple bandana around his eyes, peering closer to him to see his eyes. She smiled; oh, that sweet, precious smile was all he needed to see to show that she wasn't afraid of him. Her fingers danced around the purple material, softly waltzing over his eyebrows and relishing in the rough feel of his scaly skin, never taking her eyes off of his.

"W-what?" Donnie asked as his voice went up a few notches, hoping she wasn't freaking out about his appearance.

"Your eyes . . . they're green, like a hazel green. I like them." Danielle whispered, her breath ghosting over his face, and he breathed in her scent. Heavenly, it was all he thought to himself as he felt her place his glasses back on his face.

She smiled at him, her smile genuine and real. There was no mistake about it, he was a giant talking turtle. But it didn't matter to her; it was who he was on the inside.

"Aren't you going to scream?" Don asked, wondering why she wasn't screaming her head off.

"Why would I scream? Is it because of your appearance?" Danielle asked as she watched him nod.

"That would be the logical answer." Donatello answered, his face frowned even. She should be screaming, telling him to get away from her, running for her life ad yet here she was, sitting here looking at him with a smile on her face.

"I should be screaming, but I'm not going to. You're ashamed to been seen by anyone because you're not used to it. Is it because you're different? Donnie, it's not appearances that matter to me. What matters to me . . .is right here." Danielle answered, smiling as she placed her palm against the bony chest plate of his plastron. He looked at her and smiled shyly, adjusting his glasses from falling off his nose.

"Dani, are you alright?" Lauren asked, her head turning over to hopefully hear her younger sister's voice.

"Dani? What the hell is going on?" Rachel growled as she tried to get the blindfold off her face, making the younger sister smile and giggle at her sister's silly attempts.

"Dudes, anyone know where we are?" Eri asked, her head lolling over to the side, wondering what was going on.

"It's okay, guys. They won't hurt us." Danielle answered, looking at her sisters then back at Donatello while her smile never leaving her face.

"Guys, take the blindfolds off the girls. We can trust them." Donatello said, looking deep into Danielle's eyes for any sign of despair and saw none.

"Are you sure, Donnie?" Leonardo asked, stepping forward to look at Lauren for a moment before glancing at his younger brother. Danielle looked up at Leonardo, and smiled at the oldest brother. It seemed that she wasn't afraid or shocked about them, but he knew that her sisters might take it differently.

"If she ain't scared of us, then wha' would her sistas think of us? I say no, and leave them on the others." Raphael growled, waling over to Leo and pointing at the girls.

"What's the matter? Are you scared, asshat?" Rachel grumbled as she smirked behind the blindfold.

"Dudes, we gotta see these girls. I bet they're all hot, especially the one with strawberry hair." Michelangelo whispered, as he too walked over to the girls on their couch.

"Please, please, please! Can we take them off?" Eri asked, excited to hopefully see again.

The other three brothers looked at one another, then looked down at their brother who was looking at Danielle with a gleam in his eyes, and a small smile on his face. Maybe there was a chance that they would accept their appearances and not freak out like their sister had. Leo looked at his two younger brothers then looked down at Lauren, who was fidgeting in her seat, praying that she wouldn't freak out by his appearance. He walked over to stand in front of Lauren, and slowly brought his large hands over to the back of Lauren's head. He turned his head to watch his brothers, who were mimicking his actions. Raphael's hands were on the knot of Rachel's blindfold, shaking with anticipation and anguish. Michelangelo's hands were behind Eri's head, slowly beginning to untie the knot behind her blindfold, but stopped and looked at Leo for any directions.

"Lauren?" Leonardo asked, watching as her head looked up to the sound of his voice. He had hoped that her reaction to him would be like Danielle's to Donatello and accept him.

"Yes?"

"I'm going to take the blindfold off, but I need your word that you won't scream, and to keep your eyes closed for a moment longer." Leo said in a calm voice, even though, he was extremely nervous as hell on the inside.

"I promise." Lauren said as she felt the blindfold give way from her head, and kept her eyes closed while feeling his large hands caressing her hair gently to keep the strands from knotting up.

"Hey, creampuff. Listen, I'm gonna take the damn blindfold off ya, but you gotta get yer eyes closed, got it?" Raphael grumbled as he untied the knot and began to pull the strap off her eyes.

"Why? Are ya ugly, asshat?" Rachel said as she felt a light smack in the back of her head by him, but not enough to seriously damage her.

"Just shut up, and do as I say, narcissist." Raph grumbled as he finished taking off her blindfold, and stepped back to stand next to Leo.

"Dudette, it's gonna be okay, okay? I promise you'll be able to see again, but keep your eyes shut til I give the magic word, okay angelcake?" Michelangelo said as he pulled the blindfold off Eri's face, and stepped back.

"Okay, dude. This is going to be awesome!" Eri squealed as she felt her blindfold be taken off and she lightly jumped in her seat while Mikey backed away to stand with his brothers.

"Okay, guys. You can open your eyes." Leonardo said as he waited for the ultimate truth to come out.

All three girls opened their eyes, and were met with a shock. Standing in front of them were three giant turtles, one wearing a blue bandana, one with a red bandana and the third with an orange bandana. They stood there watching as the girls stared at them in shock for a moment, and wanted to know what they were thinking inside their heads. Rachel looked like she was seeing an alien from outerspace; Lauren stared at them like she was imagining things, and Eri . . . she looked like she was in a science fiction movie and was all smiles.

"Oh, my GOD! What the hell?!" Rachel yelled as she stood on top of the couch, pointing at the turtles; her mind not processing what she was seeing.

"Wait, you guys are . . . This is . . . " Lauren started to say as she stood up and tried to get Rachel to calm down.

"Holy shit, dudes! They're giant turtles! This is amazing!" Eri yelled as she jumped off the couch, and winced in pain as her leg landed wrong.

"Hold on, guys! They're not going to hurt us. They saved us." Danielle tried to reason with her siblings, hoping they would calm down and see that they meant no harm.

"Are you crazy, Dani?! Look at them! They're . . . alien! Giant fucking aliens!" Rachel yelled as she fell back onto the couch, and looked at Danielle with disbelief.

"No, that's stupid." Lauren said as she looked at Leonardo with disbelief, hoping that they were wearing ridiculous costumes just to scare them.

"And scientifically inaccurate. Technically, they're box turtles - mutated turtles to be precise." Danielle corrected Rachel as she stared at her sister with annoyance for not getting her facts right while pushing her glasses p on her nose from falling off.

"Is there anything else we need to know about these guys?! Because I would sure like to know right now, sis!" Rachel yelled pointing at the turtles while looking at Dani with scared eyes.

"THEY"RE NINJAS!" Erica concluded, looking at the guys then to her sisters with big excited eyes. She smiled at Mikey and waved at him, who waved sheepishly back at her.

"Okay, we've completely lost our minds!" Rachel growled as she flailed her arm in the air, not believing what she was seeing.

"Rae, they're real. They're just as real as we are. You can't ignore that." Danielle said, laying a hand on her uninjured shoulder gently before it was roughly shrugged off.

"That's not logical. It's complete bullshit!" Rach growled as she glared at Dani to prove her sister wrong.

"You know what? Don't start this logical and illogical argument with me, Rach." Dani growled back as she looked at her sister with annoyance.

"Will you guys shut up for two minutes?!" Lauren yelled at her two sisters shutting them up instantly. She flipped her black hair out of her face, and huffed while looking at Leonardo with guarded eyes.

"Let me handle this. I speak their language." Erica said as she turned to look at Michelangelo before pointing at him to get his attention.

"You, surfer turtle. You sprecken the English?" Eri asked while waiting for Mikey to answer.

"I speak the language, dudette." Mikey answered while waving his arms up in the air as if he were being held against his will. The orange-clad turtle had to be at least six foot one, if not six foot two at best with light green skin that adorned freckles. He wore a couple beaded necklaces around his neck that had sunglasses dangling off of them; a gray hoodie wrapped around his waist, and wore what appeared to be swim pants. One of the pant legs was shorter than the other, and had duct tape wrapped around parts of the pants. He wore a pair of sneakers with the fronts cut to accommodate his large feet. Those baby blue eyes - they caught her attention and drew her in like a moth to a flame. He was cute.

"What continent is this?" Eri asked as she pointed to the floor.

"Manhattan." Mikey answered, looking at the girl with a confusing look on his face.

"Awesome! Now, question two. How long have we been here?" Eri asked again as she hobbled slowly over to him, her leg shooting sharp pains from the injury.

"Two weeks." Mikey answered as he watched this beauty come closer to him.

"Question three . . . are we in a sewer?" Eri asked as she stood in front of Michelangelo, her honey brown eyes looking over the youngest turtle brother.

"N-n-no . . . yeah, we are." Mikey stuttered as he looked down in shame, not noticing the smile that reached her face.

"And my final question is this . . . who is the genius that made this couch?" Eri asked her last question as she turned to point at the couch that her sisters occupied at the moment.

"Why are you so curious about the damn couch?" Lauren growled as she face palmed herself in the face then glanced at her little sister.

"That couch is made out of pizza boxes." Eri stated as she stared at it in wonder.

Lauren and Rachel looked at each other, then pulled the blanket off of the back of the couch, and realized that it really was made out of pizza boxes.

"Holy shit, it is made out of pizza boxes. That is kickass." Rachel stated, her eyes widening in shock and realizing that Erica was right about something for once.

"I know, right? It's amazing!" Erica said as she looked at Mikey and back at her sisters. Her leg gave out on her, and she fell to the floor, feeling Mikey's arms wrap around her and hold her in his arms.

"Whoa, dudette! Take it easy!" Michelangelo said as he held her gently in his arms, gazing into her honey brown eyes.

"What the FUCK is going on?!" Rachel growled as she gripped her head in confusion.

"Please, my dear girls, everything is alright." Shimizu said as she came out of the shadows to keep her daughters calm.

Everyone turned to see a large white mouse come out, wearing a light cream Chinese kimono with golden symbols along the entirety. Her graying hair partially up in a clip, and the rest falling in waves behind her. Her light green eyes were slightly angled while looking around the environment, and glanced at her four daughters, her smile enver leaving her face. Her pink nose twitched slightly, her whiskers gently twitching as she smiled at her girls.

"Please, calm down girls. There is no reason to be afraid. All will be made clear." Splinter said as she walked up to stand next to Shimizu, a small smile on his aged face.

The girls looked at the giant rat, and gaped at him like fishes out of water. All four girls looked at one another, and fainted at the sight of Splinter. The turtle brothers looked at one another, and shook their heads.

"You really have a way with the ladies, sensei."Leonardo said as he shook his head in disbelief.

"This is gon' be a long fuckin' night." Raph grumbled as he face palmed himself.

XXXXX

**Author's Note: Woooooo! Finally! *falls off of chair* I'm still alive, guys! Sorry this chapter took longer than I had anticipated, but due to work wearing me out, I had little time to work on this. I finally got the chance to introduce Shimizu sensei at last. This is going to be awesome, but now to work on the next chapter. Reviews are welcome, and I love leaving you guys on cliffhangers. **


	11. All Will Be Made Clear

**Author's Note: Muahahahaha! Hello lovies! Welcome back to another awesome chapter of this story! You guys are awesome for reviewing. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Vern and April returned to Channel Six, hoping to hear some news about their missing friends. It had been two weeks; two long weeks since they went missing, and no one had heard from them, let alone seen them since that fateful night. April had her cup of coffee in her hand; it was her third cup that day, and she was running low on steam. Vern was feeling the same way; his eyes were red and watery from trying to stay up late into the wee hours of the morning, going on searches in finding these young girls. But, to no avail, he had come up with nothing.

They exited the elevator, and walked briskly over to their boss's office, hoping that she had some news about the girls.

"O'Neil, don't worry, we'll find them." Vern tried to calm her down as he tried to keep up with her fast paced walking while holstering his backpack onto his shoulder and carrying his coffee in one hand.

"Vern, it's been two weeks! And we've got nothing; no leads, no reports, no calls, nothing!" April growled out as she opened the door to Thompson's office, only for the pair to find Eric Sacks, owner of Sacks Industries talking to Bernadette.

"Ah, O'Neil, Fenwick. I'm glad you guys are here; you've met Eric Sacks, right?" Thompson said as she walked from behind her desk to confront the reporting team as she introduced the business man to the pair.

Eric Sacks walked up to the pair, his business suit on to the tee, his hair swept back in perfection. The middle aged business owner had heard about the missing girls, and knew that this was a chance to help out.

"Ms. O'Neil, I'm so glad to meet you again. I've heard about your reports regarding the girls, and wish to give you my deepest condolences." Sacks said as he shook her hand, and then shook Vern's hand. He looked at the business man with a steely look; there was something about this man that he didn't trust, and his instincts were never wrong.

"Likewise. Listen, Thompson, have you heard anything yet?" O'Neil asked as she looked at her boss with hope in her eyes.

"Not yet. I've called every news station within the city limits, and they're doing everything they can to find them. Plus, I've even asked Mr. Sacks here to use his security systems to help locate the girls." Thompson said as she walked up to April and explained to her about the hep they're going to receive.

"W-why don't we use the police force?" Vern asked as he eyed the business man with question.

"Because they're too damn lazy eating their donuts to help us out. But, with the help of Sacks Industries, he'll be able to use his security programs to help locate the girls, and see if they're being held against their wills. If that's the case, then the police will get involved." Thompson answered, her glasses beaming with light.

"At Sacks Industries, we will do everything and anything we can do to help find these poor girls." Eric said as he looked at April sincerely, knowing how important this means to her.

"I appreciate it. Thank you, Mr. Sacks." April said as she shook his hand again, and smiled at the middle aged man.

"If you all will excuse me, I have to get back to my office." Eric Sacks said as he walked past the three and out of the office, leaving the reporting team and their boss staring at his exiting body.

"I don't trust him." Vern said as he glared at the door where the business man left.

"Vern." Bernadette said as she glared at her cameraman.

"I'm telling you, Thompson. My gut is never wrong about these things, and I just got a bad feeling about this." Vern said, looking at his boss with determination in his eyes.

"I think you guys need a few days off. If any leads come up, I'll let you both know immediately." Thompson said as she watched the pair nod and retreat from the office.

XXXX

Eric Sacks had returned to his office, closing and locking his door as he walked over to his desk and grabbed the phone off his desk. He dialed a number and waited for the other party to pick up. On the second ring, he heard the voice answer.

"_Moshimoshi?_" the voice answered as a smile reached Sacks' face.

"I have the pictures of each of the girls you requested about." Sacks said as he looked down at the four pictures he held in his hand.

"_Watashi wa sorera on'nanoko wa iki tetai_." the voice said as Sacks tapped his knuckles lightly on the desk while studying the faces of each of the sisters.

"It won't be easy to find them. But we will have them very soon." Eric said as he tried to reason with the voice on the other end of the phone.

"_Korera no on'nanoko wa, sugureta sentōkidearu. Karera wa ashi no ichizoku ni sugure kizoku o okonaimasu._" the voice continued to speak as Sacks smiled at the notion that was contributed to him.

"I will personally see to it that they belong to us." Sacks said as he knew what must be done.

"_Masu wa watashi ni korera no shōjo o motte, anata wa anata no okane ni narimasu_." the voice said as Sacks smiled brightly at the response.

"Consider it done, my master." Eric said as he hung up on the other person, and stared down at the four sisters.

"Oh what money you will be worth capturing." he said to himself as he picked up the phone again and dialed a number before hearing a voice connect.

XXXX

The four sisters were in the meditation room recovering from the shock of everything that had happened within the last few hours. Between waking up and finding out that the four heroes who rescued them were giant mutant turtles, as well as finding out that their father was a giant rat sensei, it took a lot for all four of them to pass out from shock. They were lying around the makeshift table, their heads supported by large pillows and covered in light blankets. Master Splinter sat on top of the large table alongside Shimizu, looking at each of the four girls in surprise. His long tail swayed slightly as he studied their features, taking in how long it had been since he had seen them, let alone seen Shimizu.

"I am still amazed at how much they're grown up all these years. It only seems yesterday that they were small and running around the home, playing with my sons." Splinter reminisce as he stared at the girls before turning his gaze to Shimizu, who smiled back and looked down at her sleeping daughters.

"Yes, it does not feel like eleven years have gone by. And your sons . . . they've grown up so much. I had a feeling that this day would come soon, but not in the circumstances that it presented them." Shimizu said as she swayed her tail down to gently stroke Lauren's cheek with the tip of her tail, staring brightly at her oldest daughter.

"Your daughters are very beautiful, just as I remembered them."

"Oh, you yowai ratto. You still have your young appearance." Shimizu joked as she stroked the side of his muzzle, feeling the long mustache that trailed down from the side of his nose.

"You are still as lovely as ever, my hana. But, I do believe we owe our children an explanation." Splinter said as he watched Erica and Danielle begin to stir.

Erica woke up as she rubbed the back of her hand against her eyes, trying to get rid of the sleep from her honey brown eyes. She blinked a few times, and rubbed her head while looking over to Danielle; Eri sat up right and stretched a little bit, looking around to see where she was. Her sister stretched her arms above her head as she looked around while shuffling her hand around her to find her glasses.

"Yes, we owe them everything." Shimizu replied as she watched Rachel and Lauren beginning to stir as well.

Rachel grumbled as she sat up and scratched her head while glancing at Lauren, and nudged her hard to wake up. Lauren sat up and rubbed her hands over her eyes, finally getting the sleep away from her eyes. They looked at one another, then looked at the two younger sister and nodded towards them.

"Man, what a weird dream." Rachel said as she yawned and stretched her limbs, standing up and looking around the room, not noticing the two senseis sitting on the table.

"Mmm, where are we?" Lauren said as she too stood up and looked around, seeing the large wall of boomboxes and looked bewildered about the wall.

"Dudes, it's a giant wall of boomboxes! That is so awesome!" Eri said as she jumped up and ran over to the wall, running her fingertips lightly over one of them as if it were old and ready to fall off.

"I think we're still under the city." Danielle said as she looked around at the new room in wonder.

The meditation room was large indeed, sporting a makeshift table, pillows for seats and a huge wall of boomboxes. All four girls took it all in - there was a small shelving unit over by Lauren and Rachel, each shelf cramped full of old books, scrolls, and boxes with hidden treasures inside. The floor underneath them was made of hardwood planks, supporting all their weight. A refrigerator and stove sat in the corner over by Danielle; neat trinkets and small things caught all of their eyes, none were even aware of the two senseis watching them with smiles on their faces. Erica looked above and gasped as she came across the most awesome thing her eyes laid upon - a chandelier with different colored light bulbs being held up by a chain. It twinkled softly and made beautiful music to her ears. This place felt homey, as if they belonged here.

"Guys, do you feel like deja vu?" Eri asked as she reached up and lightly played with the lights, her hands softly touching the metal and smiling.

"You have been here before, my dear girls." Splinter smiled as he looked at all four girls who turned to see the old rat.

They looked at him in shock and walked over until they all stood in front of him, taking in his appearance while looking at their sensei for answers. The four girls looked at Splinter, who had a smile on his aged face, and looked at each one of the girls. His brownish gray fur almost seemed brighter in the light; his brown and yellow robes were large and pooled around him like a gentle river of cloth. He took in each of the girls' appearances, all four were wearing overly large t-shirts that went down to their knees, covering most of their bodies. Their hair was a little disheveled, but other than that, they looked beautiful and healthy. Their injuries had healed very quickly, which made him begin to wonder how they healed so fast.

"It's been a long time. Hmm, you always did have those curious eyes, and you four still have those eyes." Splinter said as he leaned in closer to see Eri's eyes, who had large and curious eyes looking back at him.

"I-I don't understand. What's going on, sensei?" Lauren asked as she looked at their mother for answers.

"Don't be afraid. All will be made clear. Now please, you girls need to sit and rest. I will get the boys." Shimizu said as she got up and jumped off the table while walking out of the meditation room and into the dojo where the four turtle brothers were training.

Lauren looked at Splinter and wondered where she had seen him before. She looked around the room as did her younger sisters, and took in the room with wondrous eyes. It felt as if they've been here before, like it was their second home that had been lost and recently found again. She felt inner peace, away from the chaos that the city above erupted around them. She felt like she was in a gentle river, entranced by its calm demeanor. She was so engrossed with the room that she didn't hear Leonardo enter the room.

"Sensei, are they awake?" Leo asked as he looked at Lauren who turned to look back at him. The room was silent as she stared at the oldest turtle, who calmly walked over to Lauren and gazed at her beauty.

Never had Leonardo been captured by anyone's attention, let alone a girl's attention. He had never seen anything or anyone so beautiful before; she was a vision, a beautiful deity that descended from the heavens to bless him. Lauren looked up at take in his appearance. Sporting a blue bandana around his eyes, she took in his eyes - bright blue eyes that glowed behind the mask; he towered over her, at least six foot five if she had to guess his height. She noticed that he had a faded scar that ran from the right side of his forehead down to the right side of his cheek. She wanted to run her fingers over the scar, but insisted that she didn't. Lauren looked at his appearance more - he wore what looked like a Yoroi samurai chest plate that was made out of wood; shoulder pads sitting on his thick shoulders, a blue japanese skirt and custom foot wear. His shell - he had two things sticking up.

As she peered closer, he took his hand and gently brushed his fingers along her cheek. He looked deep into her eyes; even though he was guarded about this girl, there was something calming about her demeanor. He watched her for a moment, her eyes glued to the back of his shell. He understood, and knelt down in front of her, letting her see what she wanted to see. Lauren gasped as she watched him reach behind him and grab his katanas from their sheaths and present them to her. She glanced at the katanas in his hands, and she hesitantly reached her hand to touch the cool steel underneath her fingertips. Lauren gasped softly as she touched the steel of the katana, her fingers running over the metal wit precision and gentleness. She looked at Leonardo, and touched his cheek gently, watching his eyes widen slightly before resuming their cool demeanor.

"You are . . . Leonardo?" Lauren asked as she looked at the oldest turtle who nodded and stood back up before sheathing his katanas back behind his shell. He stared down at the girl and looked back at his sensei.

"Dad, this is -" Leonardo started to say until Splinter raised his hand up to quiet his son.

"It is alright, my son. I will explain everything once your brothers are here." Splinter said as he watched Leonardo and Lauren look at one another in a quiet but comfortable silence; it was as if two warriors appreciated the honor that one another had.

They silently looked at one another, a silent but comfortable aura between the two. Lauren sat down first, sitting with her legs tucked underneath her. Leo sat next to her the same way and looked over at her, taking in her peaceful nature before hearing his brothers coming into the meditation room.

"Dude, I totally had you in that match, bro. I totally won." Mikey boasted as he and Raphael walked into the room arguing as usual with Donatello trailing behind them. Leonardo shook his head at his brothers' bickering, wondering if their sensei will tell them what is going on.

"I swear to God, Mikey. If you don't shut ya trap, I'll kick your ass all over this place." Raphael grumbled as he walked further into the meditation room, not paying attention to the girls.

"Wow, and I thought I had a bad attitude." Rachel grumbled as Raph turned to looked at her, and scowling at her remark.

Rachel looked up at the turtle, who sported a red bandana dorag thing. He was large - possibly the largest of the four turtles. He had dark green skin; his liquid amber gold eyes glared at her, making her shiver just a tad. He stood in front of her, as if he were challenging her and she stood up to him, glaring back at him. His bulky body towered over her; he had to have been six foot eight at most, his muscles bulging and powerful, rippling underneath his tough scaly skin. He adorned bandages around his biceps, forearms, thighs and legs. Rachel looked closer at his face, and noticed the scar that ran along the right side of his upper lip. He looked like a badass - more or less, but she also thought he was a meathead, judging by the way his muscles looked.

Raphael glared at this tiny girl before him, and he had to smirk down at her. He always liked a challenge, and for some reason, this girl posed to be a challenger to him; he craved a challenge, something that would keep him on his toes, keep him wanting more of this challenge. He wouldn't admit it, but he actually liked the girl.

"Hmph. How ya feeling, creampuff?" Raph asked as he messed her hair up beneath his large hand. He realized that he was so much larger than her; he could crush her skull with one hand, and it dawned on him how much of a freak he really was, though he wouldn't say it.

"Asshat." Rachel grumbled as she glared up at him before yanking his hand off the top of her head, and sitting down next to Leonardo, while glancing at Raphael, who sat next to her and huffed through his nose.

Donatello walked in and looked at Danielle, who smiled brightly at him and walked over to him. He smiled shyly at her; that beautiful smile - it lit up the entire room. He was so glad that she healed most of her injuries, well all except for the faint bruising by her eye. He slowly brought his hand up and touched her cheekbone with his thumb, stroking the soft delicate skin. She giggled, and he smiled at her reaction. He cared so much for her; he would be devastated if anything worse had happened to her. Both he and Mikey were talking about the two youngest girls while they were sparring; they both liked Erica and Danielle and grew attached to them. It wasn't about the fact that they didn't freak out about their appearances; it was the idea that they were accepting of them as mutants, as humanoid beings that had feelings and minds of their own. A dream that each of them had one long ago of being accepted and loved by a beautiful girl had begun to come true; an illogical fantasy that made its way into his mind and soul.

"Hi, Donnie." Danielle greeted, her smile never leaving her face; her teal eyes twinkling behind her black glasses.

"H-hi, D-Danielle. How are you feeling?" Donatello asked as he walked with over to where everyone else was sitting, minding her few injuries that she still acquired.

"Much better." Dani answered as she sat down along with Donnie, looking at her sensei for answers.

"Duuuuuude!" Erica greeted Mikey as he walked up to the smallest girl, and pulled her up into his arms, twirling her around before setting her back down on her feet.

"What's up, angelcake?" Mikey asked as she giggled about being twirled around and was sitting on the floor next to her, smiling brightly at her.

Both Splinter and Shimizu looked at their children, smiles never leaving their faces. It had been too long since they've seen each other, and already they were getting along quite well. It was time the two senseis told them the truth about their children meeting before.

"Shimizu-sensei . . ." Lauren started to say until she looked at her mother and quieted, knowing that there was a lot to talk about.

"It's alright, my girls. All will be made clear. We have much to answer to your questions." Shimizu said as she smiled, knowing that they all had questions to ask their teachers.

"Now, where do we begin?" Splinter asked as he looked at his sons.

XXX

**Author's Note: Hahahaha! Cliffhanger! You guys should know I'm going to be putting some cliffhangers when it's starting to get good. I'm trying to make these chapters longer as much as I can. I hope you guys don't hate me, but I'm starting to develop all four of the couples starting with their origins on how they met. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter because I will be working on the next chapter for you lovies. Reviews are welcome! See you in the next chapter! :-) **


	12. Listen Closely

**Author's Note: Hi guys! Welcome back to more of TMNT - of course, I'm basing it off of the 2014 movie. I totally am in love with that verse :) I hope you guys enjoyed the previous chapter, because I plan on making more epic chapters to come about very soon (I hope) ^_^ Anyway, you guys are amazing with your reviews! 50 reviews in two weeks, that's awesome! The more you review, the more I update. As far as the chapters go, I will try my best to make them longer. It may take a few days to upload them due to me working full time, but I will do my best to get these chapters uploaded as soon as possible. Enough of the ranting - onward with the chapter! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs.**

XXXX

April sat in the living room of her apartment, her nimble fingers flying by on the keyboard of her laptop. She was furious; anger that was borderline rage due to the fact that Thompson demanded both her and Vern take the rest of the week as well as the weekend off. Did the old hag not realize how hard the duo had been working on finding every possible clue to finding these girls? And for what? Only to receive the news that Eric Sacks, the multi-billion dollar asshole of the city, would be taking over in finding the missing girls. What a complete bunch of bullshit; Vern was so red in the face he almost punched a hole in the door to Thompson's office, if not for the fact that April had held him back and reeled him out of the building. Both her and Vern went to her apartment, hoping to do some digging of their own.

"I can't believe this bullshit. I totally would've punched the door down, if you'd let me, O'Neil." Vern growled as he came back from the kitchen with a bunch of menus in his hands, debating on what to order for dinner.

"Vern, I know. I'm just as pissed as you are that Thompson wouldn't trust us with continuing to work on this lead." April said as she continued typing away on her laptop, her eyes never leaving the screen.

"I just don't get it. I mean, why would she even consider him? That asshole we all know around here that can snake his hands into anyone's pockets, and just, make it so he seems innocent? He just gives me the creeps, O'Neil." Vern ranted as he went through menu after menu, trying to decide what to get. But with his mind and mouth flowing in regards to Sacks, the man couldn't concentrate.

"I don't see that, Vern. How can you say that about someone who's done so much work for this city over the years? He's created jobs for people; helped companies and local businesses increase their security; help benefit for the people who can't afford a place of their own. I mean, I just can't see that in him." April said as she looked away from her laptop to stare down Vern with a death glare.

"Trust me on this, O'Neil. I know when someone is lying, and I can see it through his teeth. Now, what do you want to order?" Vern said as he flared the many menus in his hands towards the woman.

"How about Thai? I haven't had it in a while." April asked as she went back to her laptop, and went searching for some answers.

"Sure, but I got an idea." Vern said as he grabbed his cell phone out of his pocket, and dialed a number.

"What are you doing?" April asked wondering if he was ordering their food.

"Calling in a favor." Vern answered as he put the phone to his ear.

XXXX

"Listen closely, my girls. I don't remember a time before being down here; that fateful night started like any other. A long time ago, I used to be a pet mouse, and was used as an experiment; being injected with mutagen. There was a terrible fire, and I was rescued by a great hogusha, who had allowed me to live and become what I am now. The mutagen had changed me in miraculous ways. All alone, I had been walking through the sewers one night, scavenging what I could to keep alive. And one night, I had found a very interesting box lying on its side. I peered down into the box, and found four infant girls with thin blankets wrapped around them." Shimizu began telling her story as she knew her girls never asked about how she became their mother. All four girls were sitting on their knees with their legs tucked behind them; the turtle brothers sitting next to them as they heard about their story.

"I knew that you four were precious, and I pitied whoever didn't want you that they had thrown away the most precious girls this world had ever seen. After I gathered all four of you up, I walked further down the sewer system, trying my best to find a suitable home for us all. I wandered around until I found Splinter; it was then that he and I knew that we were destined to meet one another." Shimizu continued as she looked over to Splinter, and it seemed that her green eyes brightened briefly.

"You fell in love with him." Eri quietly said, as she looked between her sensei and Splinter, seeing the unconditional affection between the two senseis.

"Hmm, one would think I was foolish at the time, but I knew that it was meant to be. After seeing how the humans loved their children, I knew that I had to show that same love to you four. During my stay down here, both Splinter and I began showing love towards you and the turtles; I became your mother and you became my daughters while Splinter became their father, and they became his sons. As you grew up, though, I knew that you needed to have an education, and I had met a friend long before you were old enough to attend school." Shimizu explained, glancing at each of her daughters with a smile on her aged face.

"Madame Blossom." Rachel said so quietly that Shimizu almost didn't quite catch that.

"Yes, and I had her placed as your mother so the humans wouldn't notice anything unusual. Like every child growing up, all of you had become curious of the world above, and I knew that one day the culture would grow upon you all. As I watched each of you grow up, I saw the personalities come to life as you became enamored with the turtles. " Shimizu smiled as she turned to Splinter again, her eyes know that it was his turn to share his memories of the girls.

"Um, sensei? How did the turtles become who they were? I mean, how did they turn into . . . well . . ." Danielle tried to ask, not wanting to intrude on things that she wasn't meant to know about.

"Patience, my dear. That is a story for another time. But I do remember how all four of you were paired up. Hehe - ah, it feels like yesterday all of you were running around." Splinter answered and lightly laughed as he looked at the pairs in front of him.

"Lauren and Leonardo were always fighting Raphael and Rachel; Danielle and Donatello were always exploring the home, and you, Eri, were playing with Michelangelo with anything you could find. You four were the apples to my sons eyes, and you gave them unconditional love in return. I believe, if I remember right Shimizu, that there was a time in the summer, right before the girls started school, that they were free to play and be away from the world above." Splinter remembered, his eyes staying on Eri who blushed from the memories.

"Summer? Wait, mom, didn't we used to have a summer home?" Lauren asked as she watched the two senseis glance at one another and smile.

"Yes, and that summer was the best summer you all had ever had. We knew that the humans wouldn't judge the turtles, and we decided to give you girls a chance to express yourselves to the turtles before you went to school. Lauren and Leonardo . . . hmmm, I believe you both went to the lake every night and pretended to be a knight and a princess; I remember how your hair would always be covered with midnight lilies every morning, and you both would dance by the edge of the water when the lilies would glow bright under the moonlight." Splinter answered as he watched Lauren and Leonardo look at one another, then back at their parents.

"Rachel and Raphael . . . you two would always sneak out into the garage, and hide in the back of the truck while drinking bottles of apple juice late at night. I would always find you two sleeping next to one another, and finding all the bottles around you, of course. Danielle . . . you and Donatello here, would always explore the forest around the home, never straying from the cabin, and end up on the hill every night, looking up at the stars. You told me once that you both had seen a shooting star, and made a wish. Whatever that wish was, you would never tell us. And Eri . . . ah, how you were always the curious one. You and Michelangelo would play inside and outside of the cabin, laughing and not having a care in the world. You roasted marshmallows one night, and took the whole bag on a stick instead of one at a time. The bag exploded, and all the melted marshmallows were glued to the both of you. But you laughed as if it happened all the time. That summer . . . was your first and last summer together." Splinter said as he looked at each couple, knowing that somehow, they would all remember their memories of that summer vacation.

Each of the girls looked at Splinter, their mouths floored. They remember some of the "dreams" that they claimed to have had, but never had they known. All these years that those silly little dreams that they told their mother of the boys were actually real; real memories of long distance past, coming back full force to all the girls. They looked at one another, and knew that somehow, some twisted way, that they were linked to these turtles.

"Midnight . . . " Lauren whispered as she looked at Leonardo, the memories of a little turtle boy with the brightest blue eyes and blue headband around his forehead came crashing back to her. She remembered dressing up; playing a princess who was being courted along the lake by her knight - well, samurai - and played under a tall tree that bloomed beautiful midnight white lilies every night when the moon was full. He would take some and make a little flower crown, placing it over her hair, and slowly dancing in one another's arms by the edge of the lake humming a little song.

"Apple juice . . . " Rachel softly said as she looked up at Raphael, the memories of a turtle boy with dark green scaly skin wearing a red vest and boots came to her mind. They would sneak out every night while everyone was asleep, and hijack the refrigerator where all the bottles of apple juice were. They would creep out into the garage and hide in the bed of an old pickup truck, and drink every box until they were all gone, and both were fast asleep from the amount of the juice they drank.

"Make a wish . . ." Danielle quietly said as she stared at Donatello, memories of a turtle boy with large glasses over his eyes, and wearing overalls came to her. Every day, they would explore the forest, naming everything in its scientific name and how the origins of it came to be. At night, they would lay next to one another so they gazed at the stars, pointing to them and naming each star and the constellations they formed. One night a shooting star flew across the sky, and both yelled for one another to make a wish.

"Marshmallow . . ." Erica vaguely said, looking up at Michelangelo and remembering the memories of the turtle boy with the orange traffic cone on his left leg, roasting marshmallows over a roaring fire outside. A whole bag on the end of a stick, the marshmallows expanding until they exploded; white fluff coating the two of them and laughing like it was a typical thing between them.

"Truth be told, neither me nor Shimizu wanted to tear you four apart. But thought, it was best for you girls to grow up and lead your lives in the human world. That day before school started broke my heart, watching you four leave . . . it was as if my heart, as well as the hearts that my sons had, were ripped out of us all. Each of you begged to stay, pleading to live here, but Shimizu knew that the time for you and my sons was up. Erica . . . you were the last to leave, looking back while being held in Shimizu's arms, eyes tearing with unshed tears, knowing that it would not be the last time you would meet my son. You jumped out of her arms, and ran over to Michelangelo, hugging him tightly and smiling up at him. Do you remember what you gave to him?" Splinter continued with story, and then asking Eri the question.

Eri sat there for a moment, trying to remember what it was that she lost but gave to Mikey before she left his world all those years ago. She ran her fingers through her hair, and stopped when she knew what it was that was missing. Her eyes widened; her pulse sped up, Eri looked up to Splinter and knew as much as he knew the answer to the question.

"My hair clip . . ."

"Yes, your most precious and valuable hair clip. An old silver hair clip, with a waterlily and a butterfly on it. You pulled it out, and gave it to my son, promising him that you would come back for it. Each of you girls had given up a precious and valuable item to my sons, promising them that you would come back not only for your items, but for my sons as well. But after time, they began to lose hope, and began their training in the ancient art of Ninjitzu. And after what felt like a lifetime, you have returned to my sons; the unconditional love that you once had for them is still there, buried deep in your hearts. You four are not only the missing pieces to our lives, but you are my sons' soulmates." Splinter finished saying as he watched the reaction that his sons and their beautiful girls gave after receiving all of this information.

All four sisters stared at the rat sensei, their mouths gaped open at the stunning confession that was released. All these years, they never knew; hell, none of them knew that they had been down here before. They had lived a separate life, each and every one of them, and to think, that the people who held their hearts inside of them were down here, living in the New York City sewer system, and they had just rediscovered that they were meant to be with these giant mutated turtles. The girls looked at one another, speechless and not knowing how to react to this.

"Wait a minute, dad. All these years, you told us that the summer dreams we had as kids were nothing more than a dream." Leonardo said as he looked at his sensei then back down at Lauren, who looked up at him like she had been electrocuted.

"That's right, but I wanted you all to find out the truth when they returned to you on their own." Splinter said as he watched the girls react to the news of being with the turtles as well as knowing them all along.

"I don't believe this." Lauren said, not knowing how to react.

"Holy shit!" Rachel cursed, grabbing her hair in fists, and slightly pulling at the strands, feeling the pain to make sure she was awake.

"Eri, do you have a word to describe this?" Danielle asked as she glanced at her youngest sister, who sat in thought while tapping her mouth with her knuckles. She glanced at her older sisters, and without a word, brought her hands up to her head, and made the motion that her head exploded while trying to process this information.

"I don't understand. Why didn't you say anything to us, sensei?" Lauren asked, wanting to know the reason why this secret was kept from them.

"I felt like it wasn't the right time to tell you girls about your past with the turtles. But, seeing as how fate has brought you to them, I felt that it was finally time to let you all know." Shimizu answered, looking sadly down at her daughters. She knew that she had lied to them, and she knew it had hurt all four of them, but she did it with good intentions at the time.

"Oh, my God. And here I thought there wasn't another being in this world that had a temper that rivaled my own, and I found it here with Big Red." Rachel grumbled as she glared at Raphael, who also glared back at Rachel for the comment she made.

Leonardo looked at his father, then looked down to Lauren; her light blue eyes sparkling with wonder and question. He looked down at her hand in her lap, and slowly took it in his hand, feeling the soft velvet skin beneath his scaly fingers. He breathed deeply through his nose, and bowed his head down to her hand, lightly laying his forehead against the back of her hand. She widened her eyes at the display of affection he was showing her; it was definitely a warrior's honor to show his loved one that she mattered deeply to him, and she smiled while gripping his hand with hers.

Raphael looked over at Rachel, and hesitantly wrapped his large arm around her, and pulling her slightly towards him while looking away with a scowl. Damn, and he thought he had heard everything about craziness. He was now a crazy goth's soul mate? Oh hell no, this was going to be a war between two of the hottest tempered beings in the city, and it took all of his willpower to not growl or anything. Rachel looked up at him, and huffed through her mouth slightly while wrapping her arms around herself, wondering how she got in this mess.

Donatello pulled his goggles over his glasses, and peered through them at Danielle, who giggled at his antics. He pulled them back up, and lightly took both of her hands in his, and brought them up to his plastron. He placed one of her hands on the bony chest plate of plastron, above his beating heart, and the other he brought up to his lips, kissing her knuckles delicately, as if she were a porcelain china doll that would break at the slightest touch. Danielle smiled brightly, and beamed up at him while giggling before he adjusted his glasses from falling off as well as hers.

Michelangelo maneuvered around Eri, sitting behind her while wrapping his arms around her body. She giggled like crazy as he inhaled the scent from her hair - marshmallows. Oh god, he was going to go crazy while being around her. He tightened his hold on her; Eri smiled and laughed as she pushed up against his plastron, and almost glued to him, not wanting to be away from him at all.

"My girlfriend's so much hotter than yours, Donnie-boy." Mikey joked as he felt Donnie punch him lightly in the arm.

Splinter and Shimizu both smiled as their tails wrapped around one another while glancing at their children, who had finally, after all these years, found one another again.

"Oh, that reminds me. We have to bring you girls back home." Shimizu broke the silence as she smirked while watching the girls' react, forgetting that they were still in school.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Whew! I made it! Worked on this chapter for two days, and it's finally done! Got some background on how the turtles and the girls met and how they came together. ^_^ I know it might be a little vague with them not showing the Ninjitzu training, but I will introduce that later on. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter, and expect some goodness to come around soon. Reviews are welcome! See you in the next chapter! :) **


	13. Back To Reality

**Author's Note: Hello, my lovies. And welcome back to another chapter of TMNT! I thank for those who've reviewed me already :) You guys are awesome, and I can't stress enough that I'm basing it off of the 2014 movie. I will be putting some of my own pieces into it, since I know there will be a sequel coming out in June 2016. I hope you guys will enjoy those pieces later on. Now, onward with the chapter :D **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Eric Sacks sat in his chair, his phone clutched to his ear as he had a conversation with another person on the phone. He was so busy and in depth with the conversation that he didn't realize that Karai had walked into his office, and stood in front of his desk.

"Yes, sir. I understand. I will do all in my power to make sure the safety of these girls becomes my first priority. I will keep you informed, sir. Thank you." Sacks said as he finished the conversation and hung the phone back on its receiver. He looked over at Karai, and noticed that she was a little worse for wear; her cheekbone had a light bruise on it, assuming that she had her punishment from their master. Her black hair with red highlights underneath glowed softly in the office; her eyes staring at the business man with a seething glare.

"Ah, Karai. What can I do for you?" Eric asked as he looked up at the female Foot soldier, wondering if her punishment was enough to convince her not to fail her assignments.

"You know what it is I wish to speak to you about, Eric Sacks." Karai said as she glared at the man in a heated gaze, her eyes could kill with one look.

"I take it that your punishment for failure was a success?" Eric asked with a smug look on his face as he leaned back in his chair and glanced at the woman.

"We do not speak of what Master Shredder has done to me. I have already accepted my punishment for what had happened. You wished to see me in regards for something that I have no interest of, and I will take my leave." Karai said as she turned on her heel and began to walk towards the door.

"I know where the girls are. The same girls that you had beaten up a couple of weeks ago. I can find them, and hunt them down. You will have your second chance at redeeming your dignity; reclaim your rightful place as the second in command of the Foot." Eric said as he watched Karai stop in her tracks and turn around slowly to look at her "business partner". She remembered the four sisters; the very same girls that she personally made sure would pay for interfering with her plans down at the substation. A little smirk appeared on her face, and she slowly walked back to the front of his desk, her eyes never leaving his while setting her hands on the smooth surface of the desk.

"I'm listening." Karai said as both she and Eric Sacks smirked at one another.

XXXX

The turtles walked the girls down the sewer tunnel, each pair walking side by side and talking animatedly. It was as if the eleven years that they've been apart didn't exist, and they've only been away for a few hours. There was so much that they wanted to get caught up on, but they were running out of time for now; the turtles needed to get the girls back up to the world above, back to reality; none of the girls wanted to leave, not after knowing that the turtles were their potential soul mates. And after all these years of being apart from them, they were reluctant to go back home.

"Are you guys sure you know where were going?" Rachel growled as she walked next to Raphael, looking incredulously around the dry tunnels that were underneath the city. They were surprised that these tunnels in particular were dry and not smelly, unlike some of the other connections of the sewer system within New York.

"We do live down here, you know. We know the systems down here better than anyone else." Raphael grumbled as he looked down at Rachel, wondering how dense this girl could be sometimes.

"Alright guys, enough with the banter against one another. We need to get them home before dawn." Leonardo said as he called out behind him to both Rachel and Raphael, knowing that the two of them would try to one up the other in just about everything. He looked behind him, and saw Michelangelo giving Erica a piggy back ride - well, a shell ride, her legs wrapped around his shell somewhat while he held her legs in the crooks of his arms. The two were giggling like little children, not caring about what others thought how they were acting.

"So, what are your favorite hobbies, dude?" Eri asked as she gripped the top rim of his shell, smiling as he beamed back to her.

"Video games, comic books, skateboarding, and even the occasional surfboarding." Mikey answered as he twirled her around, keeping her close to his shell.

"Me too." Eri said as she leaned down towards his shell, tracing the designs on the rim of it by his head.

"It's official, there are two Michelangelos; one from each of the opposite sex." Rachel said as she glanced at the two and rolled her eyes at the display she was seeing.

"How much farther until we get to our place?" Lauren asked as she looked at Leonardo, hoping it wouldn't be much farther to walk; not that she minded it as long as she had Leonardo in her company.

"Donnie?"

"We should be approaching the next manhole right about . . . now." Donatello answered as they walked up to see the manhole right above all the them.

"Awesome, I hope we're at the right place." Lauren said as she looked up at the lid on the manhole, and climbed up the ladder to hopefully would be their home.

She popped open the lid to the manhole, and slid it to the side as she looked around and noticed a familiar neighborhood. Lauren pulled herself out of the manhole, and took a few steps onto the concrete surface, smiling to herself as she knew where they were. They were home; and to think, they had lived above the turtles all these years and never even acknowledged it. All four of them took this alley as a short cut to school, and only they knew about it; it sent chills down her spine, as she knew that it meant that they could visit the turtles whenever they want.

"What, are you kidding me? All these years, and you guys were right underneath us? That's fucking crazy!" Rachel said as she popped up and walked around, realizing it was their home and not far from their neighborhood.

"This is insane! We are totally close to you, dudes. This makes my day even better!" Eri said as she too climbed out of the sewer drain and looked around while seeing her home above them.

"How can we thank you guys?" Danielle asked as she carefully climbed out of the manhole and looked down at the turtles, smiling brightly at them.

"You don't have to thank us; we were only doing what was right." Leonardo said as he popped out of the hole, and glanced at the four sisters with a small smile on his face. Lauren stared at him; he really did have a sweet smile on his face, and she loved that, even though she wouldn't admit it out loud.

"We do owe you; you saved our lives, and made us realize how important you guys are." Danielle said while looking at Donatello as he was climbing out of the manhole.

"It's just what we do." Donatello replied as he adjusted his glasses to make sure they wouldn't fall off while looking at Danielle.

"But you are just as important to me - I-I-I mean, to us that you are shown some appreciation that you do for this city." Danelle stuttered, trying her hardest to hide the blush that formed on her cheeks.

"How about we grab something to eat? Maybe pizza -" Eri said as Micheangelo jumped out of the sewer and right in front of her after hearing the word pizza.

"Dudette, you totally are a mind reader!" Mikey yelled happily as he jumped up and down like a crazed kid begging for candy, making Eri laugh at his antics.

"That's because I'm . . . a Jedi." Eri confessed as she waved her hands in the air as if she were made of magic. Mikey looked at her shocked before smiling and giving her a high five - well, a high three for him.

"I knew it." Mikey said as they laughed and tried to use their "magic" on one another.

"You did say the magic word." Raphael grumbled as he started to climb halfway up the ladder, and having his upper body out of the manhole while looking at the girls like they should've know better than to mention pizza around Mikey at all.

"You guys eat pizza?" Rachel asked as she looked at them like it was a sin for a turtle to eat any kind of human food.

"Doesn't everybody?" Mikey and Raph said at the same time, making Rachel look at them flabbergasted and walk away while Raph climbed out completely, and cover the manhole leading to the sewers before walking with everyone else to the girls' home.

"So, what do you guys like on your pizza?" Lauren asked as they began walking over to a fire escape before pulling the ladder down.

"Oh, the usual. Flies, spiders, anchovies, marshmallows, and cottage cheese." Michelangelo answered as all four girls stopped and looked at one another before looking back at the turtles, wondering if they were serious about what they ate.

"We're joking. We eat any kind of pizza." Leonardo said as he laughed lightly at their shocked faces before following the girls up to their penthouse.

"Then you guys are in for a treat. I know the best pizza joint in town." Rachel said as the four pairs walked up the stairs.

XXXXX

Vern was on the phone for over an hour after ordering their food, making April wonder who he was on the phone with for a long time. It couldn't have been anyone from Channel Six; she would've known who it was in the first place. As she looked onto her laptop, she noticed a particular article regarding her friends, and clicked on it. What she read on the screen made her sadden even more to the point of tears; it stated that the four girls were somehow connected with an armed robbery that had happened prior that day. But April knew the truth; the girls were working at the shop all day since 1 PM, so there was no way that they had any connection to the robbery. It wasn't like them to be stealing anyways; all four were kind, gentle, caring and helpful towards their community. Why would someone banter their names around the internet as if they were nothing more than common criminals? She would get to the bottom of it.

"Alright, Dan. I appreciate you looking into this for me. Thanks, man. Talk to you soon, bye." Vern ended his conversation with the other person on his cell phone as he shut it off and walked back over to the couch where April had been occupied for the last few hours.

"Who was that?"

"My friend Dan. He works down at the local newspaper in downtown Brooklyn, not far from the girls' hair salon. He's got more dirt about everyone than we do, and he's sure going to help us out with finding them." Vern answered as he sat down next to April, and grabbed a box of Thai food that was sitting on the coffee table while digging into its contents.

"Good. Then maybe we can figure out who is framing them about a robbery." April said as she continued to read the article on her laptop.

"Wait, what?"

"Apparently, on early Friday afternoon, the girls were somehow 'involved' with an armed robbery in the Bronx around 1 PM. It also states that they were suicidal and were forced to flee from the city, making it look like they were 'kidnapped' or ran away from the problems." April read in disgust, her stomach ready to lose its contents due to what she was reading. It was sickening to her; how could someone say that about four beautiful and innocent girls who had nothing to do with any crime?

"That's fuckin' bullshit! Those girls work their asses off on a daily basis at the hair salon! And they had been there since noon, if I remember right." Vern shouted, throwing the box on the table before standing up and throwing his arms up in the arm in complete disbelief.

"Wait a second. Something doesn't make sense here. The article said that the robbery was in the Bronx." April reread the article, making sure that she had read everything properly.

"And the girls were in downtown Brooklyn since noon. It takes roughly an hour, if not more, to get to the Bronx; which means, someone else was there and are mistaking the girls for this shit." Vern growled as he sat back down, closer to April while looking over the article as well.

"Look at the date that it was published. It was published a few hours ago. If the robbery happened the day the girls disappeared, wouldn't have been out that very day?" April inquired, looking at the date of the article, knowing that it was all too much of a coincidence.

"We need to find them, and fast." Vern stated as he took April's laptop from her and began typing away at the keyboard for some answers.

XXXXX

Karai had finished typing the article a few hours ago, her fingers sore from the fast typing. She smiled down at the computer screen while sitting at Eric Sacks desk, reading over the article she had anonymously written for the blotter online. If the girls were in hiding, then what other way to force them out by rubbing their names in a little crime? She heard the door open, and watched as Eric walked in briskly while carrying a few folders underneath his arm.

"Did you get the article all done?" Eric asked as he set the folders down on his desk while glancing at Karai.

"Yes, and the responses to it are as you suspected." Karai smirked as she knew that the plan would be set into motion.

"Excellent. I have talk to Master Shredder about the next phase of the plan, and he wishes for us to move forward." Eric stated, opening each folder and looking over all of their contents.

"What are these?"

"Files on all four of the sisters. If my speculations are right, then the girls will want to return to school and finish off their semester before summer kicks in. I figured you should act as their "substitute teacher", and see if you can dig any further into their backgrounds. Personal, medical, anything that would help us track them down." Eric answered as he handed Karai one of the folders, and watch her grin like a cheshire cat who had caught its prey. She read through the files, and looked up at Eric who shared a very similar smile.

"When?"

"Monday morning at 8 AM."

"Perfect." Karai smiled as she threw down the folder and its contents onto the desk.

XXXX

The turtles and the girls had finished eating their pizza that they ordered not that long ago; the four couples were overlooking New York City, how beautiful and deadly it could look to the eye. The horizon looked mysterious and yet glorious; the beautiful hues of blue and purple combined with the majestic and vibrant reds and oranges made the city look ferocious but mesmerizing. The couples sat on the railings of the top roof of their home, enjoying the pizza that they had just ordered not that long ago. They laughed and joked as they all looked out at the city, realizing how delirious the city can make one person. But to the turtles, the city was full of adventure, excitement, and mystery. To the girls, all it was to them was a cluster of smog, pollution and noise that blared loudly.

"This is the best pizza in town. You can't get any better than Frankie's." Rachel said as she stuffed her mouth with the crust from her pizza.

"Totally worth it." Eri agreed as she leaned over to give her sister a high five.

"There's so much to do up here." Michelangelo said as he looked around the city, hoping to use his skateboard soon.

"Unfortunately, not tonight. We need to get going." Leonardo said as he looked over at Lauren, who The girls were finally feeling sleep calling to them, and the turtles knew that they had a small window of time left before dawn's light would be up on the city. They walked the girls to the sliding glass door of their home, watching as the door flew open and the girls paused to look at them.

"When can we see you again?" Lauren asked as she looked up at Leonardo's blue eyes, feeling herself getting lost in those beautiful and alluring eyes.

"Hopefully soon. We want this search of you guys missing to die down first, then we'll start seeing you more. Until then, we'll keep you safe in the shadows." Leonardo answered, knowing that he wasn't happy of leaving Lauren above by herself. But he had little choice in the matter; instead, he took her hand gently in his and brought it up to him while leaning his forehead down to rest on the back of her hand like he had done earlier that night. Lauren gasped softly at the gesture, and smiled as he brought his head up to look into her eyes.

There was no need to say anything. They both knew that was wasn't any reason to say anything at the moment; the silent but comfortable atmosphere was enough for the two oldest teenagers to give each other a silent goodnight. She let her hand slip away from his, already missing the warmth and walking into the large condo while waiting for her sisters to come in.

"So, I guess I'll be seeing you around, asshat." Rachel smirked as she lightly punched him in the arm, making him growl at her. She was going to miss being around him for a while; she liked the banter with him, the constant bickering and the challenges he presented to her.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll be see you around, creampuff." Raphael grumbled as he ruffed her hair up beneath his large hand and smirked at the finished work while watching her turn around and walk briskly into the home.

"Don't call me creampuff, dumbass." Rachel called out as she walked away, already missing the presence of him; although she wouldn't admit it to anyone, but she liked him a lot.

"I don't want you to go! I want you to stay and read my newest comic books I've gotten a few weeks ago!" Eri whined as she hugged Mikey close to her, not wanting her turtle dude to leave here.

"I know, dudette. But you gotta go and sleep. Otherwise, who will be able to read my mind with their Jedi powers?" Michelangelo joked as he watched Eri smile and giggle at his antics.

"Alright, I guess. Remember me though, you can always find me in here" Erica finally gave in as she placed her hands over his plastron before she gave him one last large hug. She turned around and began walking up to their home, and going inside.

Danielle and Donatello stood in front of one another, awkward and shy; neither knowing how to say thank you or goodnight while others were watching them. The awkward silence between them was enough to let them know that they didn't want to go away from one another; Danielle wanted to stay with Donnie for a while longer. If the sun never came up, she would be alright with that; but she knew that they had to face reality come Monday morning.

"Donnie . . . I -"

"I-I-I know. Um - well, I've never been good with, um -" Donatello tried to say but was shocked when Danielle walked up closer to him. The electricity between them sparked; the thick atmosphere made the two awkward but a comfortable awkward. It was as if the logistics between the two were about to crash, like a mega computer at NASA was ready to corrupt their logical system. Their core processors were fuming - breaking into one another like a statistics and arithmetical equation that was desperate to be decoded.

"Come on, genius. We gotta go!" Raphael yelled as he glared at his younger brother, wondering what the hell was taking so long.

"G-G-Give me a minute!" Donatello stuttered as he glanced over to his brother before staring at Danielle, who smiled sheepishly before tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I wanted to say thank you for everything. I just wish - well, I wish I could spend more time with you." Danielle said as she blushed and looked at him.

"I know. I-I can try to keep in touch you. I-I just need to figure that -" Donatello said as he felt her lean up and place a light kiss on his cheek.

His brain crashed. Complete and utterly crashed. The light kiss from her was enough for his internal core processor to shut down for a brief moment. He looked at her in disbelief, and watched her in stunned silence as she backed away from him with the largest smile on her face, and hugged him as tight as she could while feeling his arms wrap around her gently, being careful not to crush her with his abnormal superhuman strength.

"Thank you, Donnie. Goodnight." Danielle whispered as she unwrapped her arms from him and walked to the opened door leading into her home, but not before looking back at Donatello. His hazel green eyes were large and brimming behind his glasses; his cheeks actually took a few shades of red from the blush; his smile - that's what she wanted to see from him. A smile and that was all it took to make her smile. She waved at him, and walked into the house before Lauren smiled at the boys and shut the door quietly.

Donatello slowly turned around and walked over to the railing, his smile never leaving his face. He walked until he was at the railings, and jumped up to stand on them while smirking at his brothers, who looked at him with questioning looks.

"Donnie, you okay?" Leonardo asked while wondering what his brother was smiling about.

"Yeah, I'm good." Donatello answered, his mind in dream land after that kiss.

"Finally, now let's go home." Raphael growled as he leaped off the railing and down to the concrete ground before popping the lid off of the manhole.

Michelangelo and Leonardo looked at one another before jumping down and landing on the concrete in the alley. Donatello hesitated for a moment, looking back at the closed door before smiling to himself; he knew that Danielle was very special to him, and he would do whatever it took to keep her safe as well as be with her, no matter the cost.

He jumped down, leaving the home of the girls before the dawn's light touched him, leaving him to return to the shadows of the underbelly of New York.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Whew! Longest chapter I've written *falls down in exhaustion* Three days, and it's finally done. You guys will love this chapter, I hope ^_^ Reviews are welcomed. See you in the next chapter. Cliffhangers!**


	14. Desperate Times Call Desperate Measures

**Author's Note: Hello, my lovlies. I hope you enjoy the previous chapter - probably the longest one I've written so far. In case you guys didn't get a chance to catch onto it, I'm trying to put comedy like the original 1990 movie had but still maintaining the 2014 movie verse. Also, I'm trying to expand the characters a little bit with their developments and how they interact with the turtles further along the story. Onward with the story. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Monday morning had come too fast for the four sisters as they walked out of their home and down the street towards the school. All four had butterflies in their stomachs; their minds weren't on straight - they were still remembering the past few weeks that had gone by. Working at the hair salon; walking home and taking a ride from Vern and April; investigating the substation and being taken hostage, and beaten to a bloody pulp by the Foot clan and their head bitch. As the memories came back, they were rescued by the turtles; taken care of by them, learned of their origins and discovered that they were their potential soul mates. All within the course of three weeks, and now here they were; all four standing in front of the steps of the high school in their neighborhood, and not looking forward to the gossip and questions about what had happened and why they were missing.

"I don't like this." Danielle said as she looked at the front doors, and hoped that she could go back to their home, and not worry about being judged by everyone in their classes. She was second guessing herself - something that she rarely ever did, and wanted to retreat to her room; she wanted to return to her laptop and try to converse with Donatello.

"I know, Dani. I don't like it either, but we have to face the music." Lauren said as she overlooked at her sister, then glanced up at the steps with a heavy sigh.

"This sucks! Why do we have to be here?" Eri groaned as they all climbed up the stairs and hesitated at the doors.

"This is bullshit! We should just turn around, and go home right now! I don't want to be out in public right now!" Rachel growled as she looked around in disgust, hating the fact that they were the center of attention for almost a month.

Lauren knew that her sisters were right. She wanted to go home; wanted to crawl back in bed and not go to school, not face the many questioning faces that would wonder where she and her sisters were the last few weeks. It was all overwhelming to them, and she would bear the burden on her shoulders for them. She wouldn't let them answer the hard questions that the reporters would ask; the snickers and laughs that she knew her fellow classmates would make behind their backs. She wouldn't let them be the subject of ridicule, and she be damned if she allowed any of it to get to her or her sisters.

"Come on, guys. Let's go." Lauren said as she and her sisters began to turn around in hopes of getting away from the publicity and the reporters.

As they turned around, they heard a door creak open, and they stopped in their tracks. They had been seen, and there was no turning back.

"Ah, it is the sisters. I knew I wasn't imagining things. Welcome back to school, girls." A voice behind them said as they knew who it was. The principal.

XXXX

Vern and April had just gotten to work first thing in the morning, ready for work and hoping for some news about their friends. After working behind Thompson's back for the rest of the week as well as the weekend, they knew that there was some goddamn conspiracy going on that needed to be cleared up. This was complete bullshit; they've both worked their asses off during the week they had off, wondering what was going on and why the girls were being framed for a crime they had not committed, let alone knew anything about.

April had her coffee in her hand as she and Vern walked into the office of Bernadette Thompson, hoping that she would allow them back to work. When they entered the office, they noticed she was on the phone with someone, and it gave them hope. She was talking very certain, as if she understood what she was being told.

"Yeah, that's awesome. I'll have my best team over as soon as possible. Thanks again." Bernadette said as she hung the phone up and looked up from her desk, seeing both Vern and April standing in front of her.

"What's up, Thompson?" Vern asked as he watched his boss stand up and look at the two.

"You two. Grab your gear and get over to the high school in uptown Brooklyn right away." Thompson ordered as she watched the pair for a moment.

"Why?" April asked as she looked with hope in her eyes.

"The girls have been found." Thompson answered with a smile on her face.

XXXX

Eric Sacks was putting his jacket on over his business shirt as he straightened himself out before looking in the mirror at his reflection. He would be the savior that this city would need; he would be the one to take all the glory, knowing that he had tricks up his sleeves in luring the girls out of hiding. He had to thank Karai for her help; she was just as conniving as he was, and it suited him that she would make a great business partner.

"Just about finish." Sacks said to himself as he fixed his tie around his neck, adjusting it to look formal and clean.

"_Sore wa jikandearu._" the voice behind Eric said as he turned around to meet his master face to face.

"Yes, it is time to meet the girls, Master Shredder." Eric said as he smirked at the thought of the girls being theirs.

XXXX

The four sisters were sitting inside the principal's office, wondering what was going to happen to them since they had not been in school. But it wasn't their fault; well, not entirely their fault. They had been so caught up with the hostage situation as well as being in the care of four mutant turtles; their lives were twisted around so much that they didn't want the spot light. They wanted to retreat; crawl back into the sewers and hide away from the grizzly and corrupted world that this beautiful city has turned into. The sisters looked at one another, not knowing what would happen.

"I'm so glad you girls are safe, and have returned to our school at last." The principal said as he looked over at the girls, a smirk on his face.

"Yeah, we're so glad to be back here." Rachel grumbled as she glared at their dickhead of a principal, hating the fact that she knew they were in trouble.

"Well, it has come to my attention that you four went, how shall I put it? 'Missing' for the last three weeks. A shame, and you four were the brightest students in my school. You have missed several assignments in all of your classes, and you have yet to give anyone, let alone us, any reason why you were gone for so long without a proper excused note." The principal said in an authoritative tone, making the girls cringe in what they were hearing.

"S-sir? I'm not sure I understand." Lauren said as she looked at the principal, not understanding what was going on.

"Well, it does sadden me to say this, but I feel like there is no other option at this point. As a responsible adult and public figure to this school and its students, you four are to repeat your senior years during the next school year. I hearby have you four expelled for the rest of the year." the principal said as he looked at the girls with a small smirk on his face.

"W-w-what?" Danielle asked quietly, not really knowing what she had just heard. All the years of her studying constantly and performing so well in her classes; working in the science fairs for over ten years and doubling up on her classes. All of that meant nothing to them; these "adults", who are suppose to protect their students were nothing to them.

"You can't be serious!" Rachel shouted as she jumped out of her chair, ready to slap the bastard across the face; if not for the fact that Erica jumped up and grabbed Rachel before pulling her down to her seat.

"Oh, but I am. You see, I know of the little stunt you pulled over in the Bronx, and I will not allow nor tolerate any thieves in my school. I have informed the police of your whereabouts here, and they will be here in any minute now." The principal said as he looked at the sisters with an evil gleam in his eyes while glancing down at his watch.

What the hell was going on?!

XXXX

Vern and April drove as fast they could without getting caught by the police for driving over the speed limit. This was crazy! The girls were back at school, and now they were about to be arrested for a crime they knew damn well they didn't commit. What the hell was going on in this crazy city? April gripped the 'oh shit' bar above her head, holding on for dear life as Vern drove like a madman through the traffic. They had to get there and explain to the police that their girls had nothing to do with the robbery in the Bronx.

"Vern, slow down! You're going to get pulled over!" April yelled as she looked at her boyfriend like a scared little girl.

"Like hell I will! If they want to pull me over, they can do it at the school!" Vern yelled back as he continued to drive fast through the traffic.

"We can still get there and not get pulled over!" April yelled as she knew that this was getting them no where.

"If we get there, and those girls are in handcuffs, I will kick everyone of those cops' asses if they don't let those girls go!" Vern yelled as he pushed on the gas pedal, hoping they could make it in time.

XXXX

Donatello looked at the footage through the security camera that was installed in the principal's office at the high school the girls attended. He was able to hook up audio into what he was watching, so he could hear what was going on as well. And from what information he had gathered, he knew that the girls would need their help. His fingers glided over the keyboards around him with precision; it was as if he knew the letters and numbers like the back of his hands and knew where they all were. He had to think of something before the girls were in even more trouble.

"Donnie, what's the plan?" Leonardo asked as he looked up at the video footage, watching the girls sit as they were waiting for their judgment for a crime they had not committed.

"I'm working on it as I'm thinking it out." Donatello answered, knowing that he had a limited amount of time to get this right before shit hit the fan.

"You betta hurry up, genius. Our girls are gonna need us if this gets too much to handle." Raphael growled as he knew what was going on before he heard the audio feedback.

"Don't worry, Raph. I'm working on it." Donnie said as he looked through the blueprints of the school on one screen while typing away on another screen as well as glancing up at the third screen with the girls on it.

He had hoped his plan would work; he wouldn't allow himself or his brothers to lose the girls they had reconnected with. He wouldn't lose Danielle; he had finally found the one person that could understand him, accept him for who and what he was, despite the logical mindset kicking in the back of his mind that this was all wrong. He worked fast, and began typing out a few sentences on the screen, hoping and praying to whatever deity was there that Danielle would get his message.

XXX

The girls were shaking, absolutely shaking with various emotions: fear, rage, shock, disappointment. They had done nothing wrong! They committed no crime whatsoever, and they all knew it. Lauren tried to keep her cool, knowing that there was some illogical mix up that was going on. Rachel was seething in rage: she was so irritated with what was going on that she was ready to punch anything in her path. Danielle was heartbroken; she felt like her chest was ripped open and poured out all of her love and attention to this academic system meant nothing to them. Erica was freaking out; she had been attentive, mostly, in all of her classes and passed with the highest grade in each class; and that was when she was studying at the last minute for everything.

"Police? Robbery? Sir, we've done nothing wrong. There must be some mix up you have." Lauren stated coolly, knowing clearly well that they've done nothing wrong.

"Oh, I'm afraid there is no mix up, my dear. You've been spotted at a local bank in the Bronx almost a month ago, and 'claimed' that you were working at your aunt's hair shop during the incident" The principal sneered, knowing that these girls were too smart for their own good.

"We WERE working at the hair salon when this happened, dipshit." Rachel growled, knowing that he was blowing out of his ass some stupid bullshit.

"It's true. They were working at the hair salon during the course of the robbery." Eric Sacks interrupted as he walked in with Karai by his side into the main office.

The four sisters turned around to meet face to face with Eric Sacks, the multi-billion dollar business man who owned Sacks Industries in New York City. He walked in and kept a steely look in his eyes as he walked in to face their principal. What shocked the girls into pure fear was the woman next to him - Karai! Oh, shit was going to hit the fan any second now. The Japanese woman walked in with her dark green eyes looking directly at Lauren, who held the steel look back at the woman. The woman wore a simple black skirt with a white blouse and red glasses while her hair hung straight down, unlike the ponytail it was normally in. She thought a disguise wouldn't make them notice her, but clearly, she was wrong. They knew who she was, but they decided to keep their mouths shut, hoping that this mess would blow over and they would go back to school like nothing had ever happened.

"Eric Sacks. My apologies on what you have walked into. I didn't expect you to arrive this early."

"Forgive me, sir, but I couldn't help but overhear that these girls were somehow involved in a robbery?" Eric asked, knowing clearly well that these girls were being framed.

"Yes, and I am expelling them for such irrational behavior. I do not tolerate that disobedience in my school." The principal said as he knew he was in trouble with this gentleman.

"Well . . . If, these four girls were involved in that robbery, knowing well enough that it happened almost a month prior to their disappearance, then why is it that my surveillance team reviewed the footage of that robbery, and they were no where in this footage, let alone anywhere near the bank?" Eric asked as he pointed to the girls then back at their principal accusing him of heresy.

"W-w-well, Mr. Sacks, I can see where you're coming from, but these four -"

"Had nothing to do with the robbery. I had my security team look over the footage for the past two weeks to confirm that they are innocent. As you are well aware that my company also handles the security in your school, and you pleaded that we install it in here to prevent any further harm to the students attending this school. And you have the audacity to accuse them of a robbery when they were missing from the world for almost a month!" Eric accused him as he knew clearly well that this imbecile was only falling into his trap.

While the two adults were arguing, Lauren kept her eye on Karai, knowing that the snake of a woman was up to something. She knew damn well that this two-faced woman was the same woman that attacked her as well as her sisters the night of the hostage takeover in the subway. The way Karai held her gaze was almost as if she were challenging Lauren to a fight at that moment, but Lauren knew better. She was trained to not engage in a battle unless she was provoked first, then she would attack. But knowing that this woman was also a skilled warrior put her in an alarming stance, her body on edge in her seat.

As all of this was going on, Danielle felt her phone vibrate and she carefully pulled it out while looking at the screen, seeing that she had a new text message. She had no idea who it was from, but she might as well see who it was trying to contact her. She pressed a button, and she knew her heart was hammering in her chest when she saw and read the message.

"_I'm working on a plan to get you and your sisters out of there._" The message said, making Danielle's heart swell with anxiety and her chest tightening. She glanced up, and looked around before trying to secretly type away on her phone; Lauren and Karai held each other's gazes, her sisters were watching the argument between the two men in front of them. She glanced back down at her phone, and started to type away, hoping she would know who it was that was trying to help them out.

"_Who is this? And how did you get my number?" _Danielle typed away before pressing the send button, hoping to get the answer back quickly.

She waited a moment, hoping that no one saw her texting on her phone. She couldn't bear to lose it, not when they were in a mess that had nothing to do with them. She felt the phone vibrate again, and she looked at the screen, opening the message, and almost smiled at the immediate response.

"_It's Donnie. I managed to follow your phone signal and got the number. But I'll tell you about it later. I know how to get you guys out of there." _The message replied back, and she knew she was in good hands.

She looked at her sisters, and knew that they were occupying the situation, hoping that she would get them out of there. She glanced at her phone again, and smiled when she saw another message appear on her phone.

"_I managed to look up the blueprints of your school, and found a secret way out of there. See if you can get out of the office and I'll help you out further." _The message replied, and Danielle knew what she had to do.

Danielle was not one to make up things, especially when it came to her health. She was never a good liar, unlike Rachel and Erica; but sometimes, desperate times call for desperate measures. Their mother and aunt had taught them how to get them out of sticky situations, and using her knowledge, she had to come up with a plan. She tucked her phone back into her pant pocket, and leaned all the way over while clutching her stomach as if she were in pain.

"Danielle? Are you alright?" Rachel asked, fearing that she was indeed really sick.

Everyone stopped and glanced at the girl, hoping that she wasn't going to be sick and that it was a minor situation. Eric walked over and knelt in front of Danielle, worry clear on his face. He gently placed his arms on her upper arms, and hoped to see that she was alright.

"I-I'm sorry, but I-I-I feel like I'm going to be sick. M-may I please use the bathroom?" Danielle stuttered, hoping her act would work.

"Yes, of course." Eric answered swiftly, letting the girl up and watching as she dashed quickly out of the office and down the hall with a speed that he had never seen before.

XXXX

Danielle ran fast, looking over her shoulder and hoped that Karai wouldn't catch onto her act. She ran down the hall and took a sharp left, and saw the bathroom. She smiled and ran to the room, opening the door, and running into it before shutting and bolting it behind her. She heaved, and pressed her ear to the door, praying to everything in her body that Karai nor anyone else had followed her. She stood quiet for a moment, and breathed out before going into her pocket and grabbing her phone. Danielle saw an incoming call, and answered it on the second ring.

"Hello?" Danielle asked, hoping she would hear the voice that she anticipated to hear for a few days.

"_Bam! I finally got a hold of you. It's me, Donnie._" Donatello answered, knowing that he was smiling from the response that she got from him on the other line.

"Donnie! Oh, thank God it's you. Listen, we got a problem."

"_I know, I saw from the security camera._" Donnie said, making Danielle confused for a moment before she caught on. She knew that he somehow hacked into the security system in the school, regardless that it was Sacks' company that used the system.

"I don't know what to do."

"_I'm here, Dani. I'll help you guys out. I managed to get the blueprints of the school, and figured a way for you guys to get out without anyone seeing you. It's in a custodian's closet, down in the far west wing of the school. I can try to get the lights to blackout the school, and give you guys a few minutes to get there before bringing them back on. It might give you and your sisters a three to four minute window tops before someone notices._" Donatello explained, his voice putting butterflies in Danielle's stomach. She needed to hear his voice; just his voice alone made her feel safe, as if he were really next to her.

"But what about the cameras? They'll surely notice us running, and find out where we went." Danielle asked, her heart thundering inside her rib cage. If they were caught, who knew what would happen to them? She didn't want to risk being caught, and they had done nothing wrong.

"_I can create blank spots, but only for about ten seconds per camera. It may not seem much, but it'll be more than enough time for you guys to get to the rendezvous point. I made you a promise that I could keep in contact with you, and I'm not letting that go broken. You have to trust me on this, Dani. I am, after all, a computer techie and genius when it comes to hacking into things." _Donatello answered, knowing that she was terrified.

Danielle thought for a moment, knowing that if she and her sisters had anyway of escaping, it had to be the one closet in the far end of the school. She knew that Eri was the fastest runner of the four, but she could run just as fast without losing her breath. They had a three to four minute window tops, and that should be more than enough time for the girls to get out while they could.

"Okay. Tell me what to do." Danielle said, knowing that desperate times called for desperate measures.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hahaha! Hello, lovelies! I apologize for my absence. Work has been killing me, and I had a writer's block on this chapter -_- But I have finally gotten the chance to update for you readers. I would never forget you; for you guys are the ones that keep me wanting to update. Anyway, this is too good of a chapter, and I had to post it now. So I hope you will forgive me for not keeping up to date as soon as I would like to. Enjoy this chapter, and look forward to the next chapter. Reviews are welcomed :D **


	15. Operation School's Out

**Author's Note: Hello again, lovelies! I am back in the groove, and apologize for my absence these past few days. Work has been keeping me away from this story, and I am sad because I want to keep writing right now -_- But duty calls, and I hate not finishing my chapters when I'm in the middle of working on them and not having my thoughts right then and there. I hope you guys enjoyed the previous chapter since I've put you guys on the edge of your seats. I have got to stop ranting :P Anyway, onward my readers. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Danielle was nervous as hell; she was a bunch of nerves full of jerking adrenaline, not knowing what to do and how to use it. She was so shaking that she wasn't sure how she would pull this off; this plan wasn't fool proof, and she knew that. There was a percentage that she and her sisters would be caught, and they would be in even more trouble than what they were already in. She walked slowly to the principal's office, her head ringing like a hornet's nest was trapped inside her brain and was irritated while trying to find a way out. After hearing Donatello's voice earlier, she knew that she was ready to get this plan underway.

She returned to the principal's office while clutching her stomach, slowly moving as if she would be sick again. Danielle made sure before she came back that she ruffled her hair a little bit, and made her face look pale and blotchy with hot water. Even though she was a terrible liar, she could pull off a good impression of a student who had just thrown up and looked like she was about to be sick again. Danielle tried to keep her head slightly down, and slowly made her way back to her seat between Rachel and Eri. But her stomach made tighter knots as she also felt the gazes of the three adults in the room, especially Karai's. She sat in her seat while keeping her head down and her hand on her stomach.

"Are you alright, Dani?" Eri whispered as she saw her sister sit down and breathe shakily.

"Y-y-yeah." Danielle answered as she looked at her sister in a sideways glance.

"I must apologize to you girls. It seems that Mr. Sacks has made me rethink my decision of expelling you four. I had no idea that his surveillance equipment would be able to make me realize that you had nothing to do with the robbery in the Bronx, so my most humble apologies to you all." The principal said as they looked at him with shocked looks.

What the fucking hell was going on?! First, they were ready to be arrested for some goddamn robbery that they had no idea happened, and now they were being apologized for not committing a crime. This made them look at one another, and almost want to slap the idiot of a principal in the face. Rachel, looking at disbelief at what had been orchestrated not that long ago, was about to jump out of her chair and punch the asshole in the face, but refrained from doing anything violent with witnesses in the room.

"Apology is accepted. Is there anything else or can we be allowed back into class?" Lauren said as she glanced briefly at the principal before returning her heated gaze over to Karai, knowing that she was up to something.

"Oh, before you return to class, I do have a few question I would like to ask you four, if you don't mind." Eric Sacks interjected as the sisters glanced at one another before staying seated in front of him.

"I just want to know how you girls managed to stay alive, considering that you were missing for almost four weeks. I assume your 'savors' kept you well?" Eric asked, glancing at each of the girls with a suspicious look in his eye.

All four were on edge after he asked his question, knowing that they would never give away the secret of the turtles that rescued and cared for them. Recalling the night before they left, they were sworn to secrecy - they would never reveal to anyone of the turtles living under the belly of Manhattan; keeping their existence a secret from anyone not trustworthy of them. It was hard, considering that they wanted to tell people that they were saved and alive, but knew how bad this would look to them as well as their potential mates. It was a sacrilege if they told anyone, let alone their best friends Vern and April, about the brothers. They would never speak a word to anyone about them. Period.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Sacks, but I don't really remember much after that night." Rachel said politely, which made her sisters look at her as if she were on a drug that was injected into her recently. Rachel was one that was never polite to anyone, unless it was her sensei; that was saying something, considering the situation that they were in, they would have to play along.

"You mean to tell me that you have no idea what had happened between the time you were taken hostage, and to the time of returning back to school this morning? I'm sorry, but that does seem a little- suspicious - if you ask me. I must know how you four survived an attack from the Foot Clan that night." Eric pestered them, getting very close to their personal bubbles.

How the hell did he know they were attacked by the Foot Clan? They stayed silent; a spell of complete silence spilled inside the office, making everyone look at the girls as if they were on trial for a crime. They were in the spotlight - stuck, cornered and locked in a cage that wouldn't break, no matter what they did. The girls looked at one another, then tried to look at anything but the man in front of them. He was tenacious in getting what he wanted - he would use any means necessary to get the information out of them. Karai bore her gaze into them, especially Lauren; she knew the bitch wouldn't back down and neither would she, and she would give the bitch a fight right now if it meant keeping their secret away from prying ears.

"_Sore wa watashi no gakusei, jūbundesu. Watashi wa korera no utsukushī on'nanoko to hanashi o suru." _A voice said as everyone stood still in the room; Eric looked over to the door as did Karai, and both bowed their heads to the man standing there.

Oroku Saki stood there, his bald head slightly glowing in the florescent lighting of the office; his face scarred a little, almost blending in with the small sign of wrinkles on his face. He walked in, and his presence alone made the girls start shaking in fear. His yukata hung down to his feet, a simple color of gray with a black belt. His sandals made almost noise, but the girls were very aware of his attire. He was definitely from Japan, that was for sure, but what was his business here, no one was sure.

"Mr. Saki, I'm surprised to see you here." The principal said, his voice giving away the surprise.

XXXX

Donatello worked vigorously and quickly on the keyboards, his fingers flying across them with a grace that no one had seen before. He stared at the screen, watching the girls cower in fear when the new figure came into the room. He had seen that man before; he was a public figure, just like Eric Sacks, but he couldn't place the name. He had to get them out of there and fast; he was almost hyperventilating a bit, knowing that if his plan didn't work, the girls would be screwed.

"Donnie-boy, I hate to be a pain but - DO SOMETHING, BRO!" Michelangelo said then yelled as loud as he could, shaking his nerdy brother in the skateboard seat he occupied. Donnie shook his brother off his shoulders, then adjusted his glasses before typing again on his keyboard.

He gulped loudly, hoping that they would get out of there in time.

"I hope this works." Donatello said quietly, readying his fingers on the keyboards in front of him and looking at the screen.

XXXX

April and Vern arrived at the front steps of the school; the Channel Six van skidding to a complete stop in the parking lot, and became silent when the engine was killed off. April tore the van door open, and ran as fast as her legs would carry her; Vern was hot on her heels, climbing the steps two at a time before yanking the front door open before the two ran down the hallway.

"You sure you know where we're going, Vern?" April asked, her breath slightly heavy as she ran in her high heels down the porcelain tiled floor.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure. I graduated from here, so I should know where everything is." Vern answered, his breath wavered as he ran down the hall before taking a right, knowing damn well where the principal's office was since he had been there many times when he was a teenager. He hoped they weren't too late.

XXXX

The girls stared at the man in the traditional yukata in front of them; they felt adrenaline course through their veins, knowing that their bodies were fighting the two stages of fight or flight mode. It took everything in their bodies to not bolt through the door; they had their plan and needed it to work at the right time. And this was not that right time.

"_Anata wa, daremoga hanashite kita koto o on'nanokodenakereba narimasen. Watashi wa hotondo no anata no sonzaidearu koto o kōei ni omoimasu._" The man said as he glared down at the girls before bowing to them, showing them respect that made their heads roll. They had no idea who this man, nor did they know what he was doing here or why he had an interest in them.

"My sensei is honored to be in your presence." Eric translated, making the girls more on edge. If this man was the teacher to Eric Sacks, then who knows how much more dangerous this man was to them? Eri looked at the man, then looked over to Danielle, wondering what her genius sister was thinking as she looked down at her phone in her pocket. The girl prayed that her sister had some plan to come up with before things got even more ugly.

Danielle looked at her phone in her pocket, and saw a text message appear on the screen. She pressed the screen, and watched as the words came up on the screen, making her heart fly into her throat before she could breathe. The words that were showing up made her realize that it was that time.

"_One minute until blackout. Get ready._" The message read to her, making the girl smirk a little in the corner of her mouth. Donatello was a genius, and she would thank him for his efforts when this was over.

What she didn't count on was Karai picking up her movements, and the female Foot soldier noticed Danielle. She must've been talking to someone without anyone knowing, and judging by the tiny smile on the teenager's face, she knew that there was some scheme going on and she would be the one to flush it out. She casually walked up to Danielle, and stood in front of the girl, knowing full well that Lauren's gaze was following her movements. She was testing the oldest girl, knowing that she would be an acceptable challenger in the coming future.

"And just who is it that you are talking to, Shōjo?" Karai inquired quietly, as she watched Danielle look up in surprised shock. The look she gave almost made Karai smile in glee; she had caught her prey in her claws, and wanted to play with the squirming catch.

Before she could get an answer out of the girl, Vern and April burst through the office door, making the door slam hard against the inner wall of the office; an echo ringing throughout the room, making everyone look at the two adults that rushed in.

"Keep the hell away from the girls, asshole!" Vern yelled as he marched up to Eric Sacks, and pointed his finger into the man's chest while ushering him back into the desk. He wouldn't stand for it; he wouldn't let these girls go without a fight.

"Vern, wait!" April shouted as she tried to break the two men up, not putting her attention to the four sisters.

The girls felt the power go out before the lights throughout the building turned black.

XXXX

"Donnie, now!" Leonardo growled as he watched the commotion going on the screen.

Donatello nodded once, and didn't hesitate as his finger pressed the one button to control the passcode he installed into the system of the school. Let the plan begin.

XXXX

Complete and total darkness covered the school, as if a black blanket was placed over the building to prevent any and all light from getting in. Now was their chance; the girls slipped quietly and quickly out the office while the adults were fighting one another.

The sisters ran as fast as their legs could carry them; the alarms were blaring in their ears, the building shrouded in darkness only made navigating through the hallways that much more difficult, but they had little choice in the matter. They needed to get away from the chaos that was around them; they needed to return to their turtles - they understood them better than any human in the city. They ran down the hallway, before taking a sharp left and ran faster while their knowledge told them what to do.

"How long do we have?" Lauren asked while breathing in short breaths in order to keep going until they were in their safe haven.

"About three minutes before someone notices we're gone." Danielle said as she held the phone in her hands while keeping up with her sisters, knowing that she had a copy of the blueprints of the school saved, thanks to Donatello.

"Where to now?" Rachel asked as they ran down the stairs below, and hoped they wouldn't be stopped by anyone.

"Take a right, I know this area like the back of my hand." Eri answered as they took the right and knew exactly where they were going - the far west wing of the school.

The sisters ran harder and faster; their legs screaming to stop and take a breath, but their minds and hearts were set on getting out of the hellhole and back to their refuge. They knew that someone would come after them; they felt like they were wanted, criminals of an unknown crime that was committed and they knew nothing of the sorts. It wouldn't be long until the city would think that they would have connections to the robbery and hunt them down like animals. They were humans, for Christ's sake, and they knew that this mess was nothing but a fucking conspiracy - a puppeteer pulling the strings behind the masquerade of mindless dolls from behind the curtain. They finally made it to the closet, and slowly opened the door, climbing in one at a time while keeping a look out for anyone to discover their whereabouts.

Once the door was closed behind Lauren, she locked it in place, and fumbled in her pocket for her phone, turning it on while trying to find an escape somewhere in this tiny broom closet; they were packed in, rats cornered in a cage of lies.

"Damn it, where is - Ah ha! Right here!" Danielle muttered as she found the loose drywall in the far back of the closet, shifting it and nudging it aside before finding a ladder that led down beneath the floor.

"_Sekasu_!" Lauren hissed as they climbed down the ladder as fast as they could, leaving Lauren the last to move. She stood on the ladder before pulling on the loose drywall and moving it back into its original position before sliding down the ladder. Her hands were going to be burning, but she didn't care; her priority was getting her sisters as well as herself away from the nightmare.

The bottom of the ladder revealed a basement of some sorts, and on the bottom of the floor was a manhole - MANHOLE! Oh, thank every deity in existence! Their ticket home; their safe haven wasn't far from them. Rachel pried open the lid, and ushered the two younger sisters to climb down first before she looked at Lauren, her breath coming in sort spurts.

"What - about - Vern -" Rachel gasped.

"We'll - worry - about that - later - Let's go home." Lauren gasped too as she and Rachel ushered down the manhole and slid the lid back over them before climbing into the sewers.

XXXX

Donatello let out a heavy sigh, not realizing that he was holding in his breath. Neither he nor his brothers realized they all were holding their breaths. He tracked Danielle's phone, the signal indicating to them that they were out of the school and into the sewer system that led to the girls home. It would a while before anyone realized that they were gone. He leaned back in his chair while feeling Leonardo's hand on his shoulder and looked up at his oldest brother - the blue-clad terrapin was smiling, knowing that the plan had worked.

"Good job, Donnie." Leo said as he watched his nerdy brother smile slightly before leaning his head back; his mind completely exhausted from worry and fraught, he knew that their part of the plan worked, and all he wanted to do was go to the surface world, and hold Danielle in his arms. His logical mind was battling his irrational thoughts - they would never be one, no matter what happened. He was a mutant as was his brothers while they were human girls, their lives full and ahead of them. Why would they want anything to do with mutant turtles? He thought over and over about the logistics of everything, but he wouldn't let that get him down. He knew that Dani was safe and that was all that mattered.

"We need to go, now." Raph grumbled as he turned away from the monitors to make sure Rachel was alright until he felt Leo's hand on his shoulder, stopping the red terrapin from moving further.

"Not yet, Raph. We wait until dusk to move out." Leo ordered, knowing full well that an argument would ensue between the two brothers.

"Why not? Damn it, Leo, we gotta go up there!" Raphael asked, his temper flaring already and he knew just as well as Leo that those girls would be hunted down. They had to move or someone would go after them as soon as they found out.

"We don't want anyone else to know about our existence, and we need to keep it that way. When it's dark up above, we'll go check on them." Leo answered, knowing that he, too, needed to make sure Lauren was alright.

"Besides, Danielle is suppose to text me when she and her sisters are home. We can wait it out until then." Donatello interjected as he turned away from the monitors, and glanced at his older brother.

Raphael knew something wasn't right, but he wasn't going to say that Leo was right either. He would have to wait until darkness fell above to check on the girls. He huffed once, and walked away from the monitors over to his weight room, knowing that he needed to clear his mind before he lost his cool again, which would force the four brothers back into the Ha-Shi, and that was something he didn't want to endure again.

"Oh, dudette! I can't wait to see her! She's gonna show me her comic book collection! I wonder if she's got any of the new ones out!" Michelangelo excitedly squealed, bouncing around the den while clutching his comic book to his plastron, his goofy smile never leaving his face.

Leonardo and Donatello looked at their brother, and shook their heads while smirking at his antics. Darkness couldn't come sooner, and the anticipation was killing each of them inside.

XXXX

Danielle looked up as she climbed out of the manhole last, seeing their condo sent shivers down her spine. They made it; they were out of the hellhole, and that was all that mattered right now. Though, they were covered in sewer water and grime, and that made them all cringe as they knew they each needed to clean up.

"Thank God! We're home!" Rachel gasped as she wiped the grime off her shoulder, and glanced up at the condo on the top floor of their building.

"We need to hang out here for a while. No contact with anyone at school; we need to be on the down low for the time being." Lauren said as they walked to the back end of their building, and slowly climbed the fire escape with dreary spirits.

"Oh, man. I need a friggin' shower so bad, dudes." Eri complained as they made their way up the metal ladders.

"I hear you, sis." Rachel grumbled as she, too, felt like she was going to fall off the ladder.

"Donnie texted me. He and his brothers want to drop by later tonight to check on us." Danielle said as she glanced down at her phone, smiling at the message it displayed to her.

Lauren smiled at the notion; she missed Leonardo, his blue eyes piercing her with a serene yet steely look; his warrior's honor burning through him as he worshiped her like she was some sort of goddess. She admired him; although, there was some mystery about him that she needed to uncover from him Perhaps a little game was in order for them all.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hahahaha! Yes, I am evil I know! :P Two chapters in one should help you guys out for my absence. I hope you are ready for the next chapter because there will be shenanigans in it :P Reviews are welcome and I'll see you in the next chapter. **


	16. Target Acquired

**Author's Note: Hello lovelies. I am so glad to be back in my A game. I hope you guys were on the edge of your seats in the last two chapters because I know I was on the edge of my seat writing them. I apologize for my absence lately, with work making me so busy, I was having a hard time writing it out. So I hope the next few chapters will make it up :) Now for some enlightenment with our turtles and the girls :P Onward with the chapter, my lovelies. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

The day seemed to drag for the girls after the big escape from the hellhole of their school; each of them were dealing with it in their own ways. Lauren tried to meditate in their living room, breathing in and out deeply while trying to relax her mind and body. She was taking the situation as best as she could; letting her emotions get the best of her wasn't the best solution to anything, so she had to play calm and lead her sisters away from the danger it presented at the school. For years, she was entrusted to make sure she would lead her sisters, should anything happen to Shimizu-sensei or Madame Blossom. It was her duty, as a leader, to make sure her sisters' happiness mattered more than her own as well as their safety. Lauren knew how much it hurt her on the inside that her sisters were happy with their desires and passions; it made her blood boil with jealousy with the face that she endured more training than the other three, and she was still a teenager, wanting to dream and let her passions take over her. But sadly, it wasn't meant for a leader to have desires and passions cloud her mind with illusions and fantasies.

Sitting Indian style on the rug of their living room, Lauren breathed deeply while trying to calm herself again. She heard the loud banging on the bathroom door from Rachel, and squeezed her eyes tightly while trying to block the annoying noise out. Rachel hadn't got her chance to take a shower, and it was only noon; oh, please let darkness envelope the city soon. Lauren huffed a sigh, and slowly got up from the floor while dragging herself over to the bathroom door where Rachel was banging hard against the door.

"Damnit, Eri! Come on! You've been in there for over forty minutes!" Rachel growled loudly as she slammed her fist into the door hard, each time harder while hoping for a hot shower.

"What's wrong, now?" Lauren asked as she knew it would result in another door getting busted down if she didn't get way.

"Eri's taking up the hot water again! I need my shower, damnit!" Rachel answered, growling at the door while jiggling the locked handle in hopes it'll magically unlock for her.

Lauren sighed heavily as she pushed Rachel gently away from the door, and knocked on it once, hard enough to hear the water shut off in the next second. She heard rustling for a moment, and stepped back as she watched the door open to reveal a wet Erica; a towel wrapped around her soaked body and a second towel wrapped tightly around her head to keep her hair from dripping all over the floor.

"Finally! I thought I never get my shower in!" Rachel gasped as she pushed her little sister out of the way, and immediately shed her clothes off too jump into the hot spray of the shower before Eri closed the door behind her to let Rachel enjoy her shower.

"Sorry." Erica said sheepishly, as she met her oldest sister's gaze, knowing that they were all tired out from what occurred earlier that morning. She walked away from Lauren while clutching the towel around her body and holding the other one on her head before going into her bedroom and shutting the door with a soft click.

Lauren just shook her head, and went back into the living room while trying to relax herself. She wouldn't admit it to her sisters, but she was just as scared as they were. She had no idea who that man was that spoke to them in Japanese, but she had a funny feeling that he was linked to Eric Sacks and Karai. That bitch - she wouldn't forgive her for what she did to her and her sisters. Lauren was lucky that Danielle had received that text message from Donatello, and they went about on their escape as a whimsical fluke. They had no idea how they managed to escape without anyone noticing, but she was very thankful that they were out and alive. The only thought that was going through her mind besides the safety of her sisters was Leonardo. The blue-clad terrapin. She thought of him for a moment; his blue eyes bore into hers with a soft and gentle but fierce and piercing gaze; his body well muscled and defined with years of hard practice and working out. The way he treasured her was very unique and honorable - he took his warrior and ninja stature to another level of respect and honor towards her. He cared for her - that she wasn't doubting. But she wasn't sure if the two could ever be happy; not only were they different species, but they were also both leaders; responsible for their families and duties to the way of ninjitsu. The memories of them as children, dancing with one another while not having a care in the world rang through her mind; oh, how she wished she could go back in time and relive those memories once a day, everyday, for the rest of her life. But she knew, it was all a fruitful fantasy; a forbidden fruit that neither she nor Leonardo would be able to have with one another.

"GODDAMN IT, ERI! I have no HOT WATER!" Rachel bellowed as loud as she could in the bathroom, snapping Lauren out of her meandering through her memories. She rolled her eyes, and shook her head while going back into the living room to meditate again.

This was going to be a long day before she got to see Leonardo again.

XXXX

Leonardo practiced hard in the dojo, slashing his katanas in the air with fluid grace and accuracy. He'd been practicing for almost six hours since he knew of the girls escaping the school, and returning to their home. He wouldn't admit to his brothers, but he was worried about Lauren as well as her sisters. He watched how Lauren stared down at the female Foot soldier, disguised as a school teacher. He saw her courage and bravery in putting her sisters safety first before her own; a true leader in his eyes. He was a leader as well, making sure his brothers were keeping up with their training and keeping up with their duties to ninjtisu. He was dedicated; determined and fearless; he would rather his brothers have their passions and desires come first before his own. It was the sacrifice that a leader had to make in order to protect the ones they care about the most. Lauren; his sweet, beautiful and fearless Lauren. How she came into his mind, and forced him to stop his training, panting hard and heavy while closing his eyes and letting her sink into the crevices of his mind. She was a deity worthy to be worshiped; a work of beautiful art that no painter or sculptor would recreate; a creature of mystery and beauty that was meant to continue living on in peace and undisturbed. Her royal blue eyes glittered with calm and serene nature; her black hair almost glowed in the light, creating an illusion of blue streaks of light bouncing off in her strands. Her aura her strength, her slim and sculpted body - NO! What the hell was he thinking?! He couldn't let those thoughts enter his mind. He was a warrior; an honorable leader, and here he was, letting his greedy and gluttonous desires slip and twirl in his eye's mind, creating an image of sexual lust and unimaginable desire to have this beautiful and dangerous deity in his arms. Oh, what he would give to have his duties of leadership stripped for one day, just to let his passions take control and allow him a sliver of a chance to make her his. But it wasn't meant to be, and he knew that.

Although, the visions of their childhood together came rushing back like a tidal wave on a beach. He sank down to one knee, and began to breathe deeply while trying to calm his jittery nerves and senses. He saw her - a child of hope and unconditional love, playing and dancing with him underneath a willow tree, which blossomed beautiful white midnight lilies. He knew how much he wanted to go back to those dreams - a dream that was real and living in the past. He wished - for one day, just one day, that he and Lauren could relive that moment of happiness. A moment of uncaring and unconditional happiness they had towards one another, while not having a care of their leadership and responsibilities towards their families. A struggle he wished he could win. He was so caught up in his internal struggle that he hadn't heard Master Splinter walk into the dojo, and rest his hand on his eldest son's shell.

"Is something ailing you, my son?" Splinter inquired, drawing Leonardo out of his mindset of Lauren, and returning to the world in front of him. He breathed in heavily once, twice and slowly stood up from his kneeling position while facing his sensei. He was so out of his element - an unease feeling entered his stomach, and clouded his judgment for a brief period of time.

"Sensei . . . I'm sorry. I hadn't heard you come in." Leonardo answered while bowing his head to his father, ashamed of thinking irrational feelings for a beautiful human girl.

"You have been deep in your training these last few hours, my son. Something is weighing on your mind." Splinter prodded, knowing that his eldest son was hard to read, and he could read him with ease.

"I . . . I can't help think, but ... I feel as if our purpose is more than protecting the city. I feel, as if, we were made to be equal with the girls. I'm not sure how to describe it." Leonardo said as he sheathed his swords into their holders on his shell, looking at his father with a questioning look in his eyes.

"My son, you are learning how it is to feel as an equal. You are extraordinary, and you were once loved unconditionally by these girls, and it was taken from you as well. You had trained all your life, not knowing that you would be accepted for who you are. And had finally gotten a second chance at that longing for equality." Splinter said, his sage advice always calmed Leonardo down from feeling any distress.

Just as Leonardo was about to question his sensei's advice, Michelangelo came barreling into the dojo, his goofy smile never leaving his face. He was doing back flips and spins before settling down on a railing while singing loudly and offkey.

"It's time to go see them. My dudette is waiting for me! Oh, angelcakes, my angelcakes." Mikey sang as both Splinter and Leonardo looked at him before shaking their heads in annoyance.

XXXX

Darkness had finally enveloped New York, giving into the black blanket for the city to claim sleep even though the city denied itself any sleep. The long and enduring day had finally come to an abrupt end, allowing the girls to finally unwind and relax throughout the rest of the day and into the night. Each of the girls had relaxed; one at a time, they took turns in taking showers, catching up on homework that was piling up for the last month; and now, all four were finally calm and at peace . . . for the time being.

Lauren sat Indian style on the couch while being propped up on a pillow behind her back; a cup of hot green tea balanced on her thigh and reading a book on ancient Japan. Rachel and Erica were sitting in front of her on the floor, both engrossed in a round of Mario Kart on the Nintendo 64 while trying to one up the other. Danielle was sitting at the large coffee table finishing up on her homework - well, trying to as she was stuck on her math assignment. The evening went uneventful, and they hoped that it would change very soon.

The doorbell rang, and Lauren looked over at the door while setting her book and cup of tea on the coffee table in front of her as she was getting up. She knew that her sisters were too involved in their other activities so she might as well get up and see who would be visiting them at this hour. She walked over to the door, and hesitated for a moment, wondering if it was a trap so the bitch leader of the Foot clan would strike her and her sisters down. She wouldn't take the chance, but it wouldn't be polite to not answer the door. She looked through the peep hole, and smirked as she saw both April and Vern standing there, hoping that the girls would open the door for them. Lauren unlocked the door, and slid the chain off its hinge before opening the door for them, but hesitating on letting them inside.

"Hey guys." Lauren said as she stood there, her body blocking them from coming inside. She was unsure about whether or not to let them in, even though they were very good friends with the older couple.

"Hey, are you guys okay?" April asked as she knew that her friends were still in shock about what happened today.

"Yeah, we're just exhausted." Lauren answered simply, knowing that she wanted to have her peace for a while.

"Would you let us in?" Vern asked, which made April elbow him in the sternum for his rude question.

"We're not really up for company tonight, no offense guys." Lauren answered, closing the door slightly more so no one would enter their home.

"We understand. Come on, Vern. We'll see you guys tomorrow morning. Goodnight." April said as she ushered Vern and herself out of the complex and left the girls peacefully to enjoy the rest of their night.

Lauren watched as the couple left hastily, but paid no attention to it as she closed the door while locking the chains and bolts in place.

XXXX

April and Vern rode the elevator down, silence between them while contemplating on the condition of the four girls. Vern had a slight bruise underneath his eye; the bastard Sacks knew how to throw a good punch or two before the two adults went into a fist fight. Both she and Vern were lucky that Sacks decided not to press charges against either of them, but the cost was the girls disappearing from the school. They explained to the principal what had occurred that day of the robbery and knew that the evidence of them having any part in it was falsified.

April pressed a button to stop the elevator at the bottom of the building, and both went out while walking and holding hands.

"I do hope they're okay." April said as she and Vern walked out of the building and to the work van.

"I'm sure they're alright. They just need a couple of days to get back on track with their lives. Now, how about dinner? My treat." Vern said as they both climbed into the van, and drove away from the building, not aware of a certain woman watching them leave the premises and holding a pair of binoculars in one hand while looking up to the top of the building.

XXXX

Lauren walked back into the living room, about ready to sink back into her book when she heard a noise from outside. She stopped halfway from picking up her book, and looked at the closed window doors, her senses heightened and alert. She knew something wasn't right, and slowly grabbed her katana from behind the couch where she hid a few other weapons of choice while walking up to the doors.

"Lauren, what's -" Danielle started to say until she was interrupted.

"Ssh! I heard something." Lauren hissed as she grabbed the hilt of her katana and slowly withdrew it from its sheath while walking up to the doors.

She hesitated, her precision on high alert; waiting for the right moment to strike against her intruder. She hand clenched lightly around the drape, drew in a deep breath, and yanked the drape away from the window ready to attack. When she looked out the sliding door, she let out a relieved breath as she stared at the faces of the four turtle brothers, who waved at her sheepishly.

"Now is that how you treat your guests who want to check in on you?" Leonardo asked as he watched Lauren unlock the door from the inside while sliding it open and sheathing her katana back in its holder.

"Sorry, guys. We've been jumpy all day since we got home." Lauren answered, ashamed at how she reacted.

"You gonna let us in or not?" Raphael asked as he pointed to their home with a smug look on his face, a toothpick sticking out of his mouth.

"I hear the asshat. Get your goddamn shell in here, I've got a bone to pick with you." Rachel loudly said as Lauren rolled her eyes from her sister's words.

"Duuuuude! I have my comics!" Eri shouted as she paused the game and ran over to the doors while Lauren moved out of the way to let the turtles come inside.

"Angelcake!" Michelangelo gasped as he ran inside and scooped her into his arms while twirling her around and smiling while listening to her giggle.

"Help yourself to whatever you want." Lauren said as Donatello and Raphael walked into the living room while she opened the door wider to let them in.

"Thank you." Donatello said as he walked inside and smiled when he saw Danielle at the table.

Lauren smiled as everyone came into the living room, except for Leonardo, who stood outside and looked at her with a mystery behind it. Those blue eyes - those orbs that haunted her dreams for so long, stared at her with a curiosity. He walked over to her and leaned his arm against the door frame while gazing into her royal blue eyes, searching for something - but for what, she was unsure of.

"Hi."

"Hey."

"What's on your mind?" Lauren asked, hoping to get some information out of him.

"Come out and talk with me." Leonardo whispered gently, offering his hand while waiting for her to accept the offer.

Lauren looked behind her to notice that everyone was busy with one another, and smirked slightly while taking his hand and being guided out into the open night. She shut the door quietly, and followed him to the railings of the building, her hand never leaving his. The warmth she felt from him was amazing; for a reptile, he was as warm blooded as she was, and it made her heart beat that much faster in her rib cage.

XXXX

Karai looked through her binoculars at what she was seeing, and knew that her instincts were right. The girls were linked to the mysterious vigilantes; they were the ones responsible for her punishment she had received from Master Shredder. She would not fail this time; she was to capture these girls and use them as bait for the turtles, and she would do whatever it took to get them.

"Targets have been sighted." Karai said into her microphone as she continued to scan the area while watching Leonardo and Lauren on the rooftop.

"Copy that. We're ready for your orders." A male voice said back to her, knowing that her plan was in action.

"Do not engage with the enemy yet. I want the orders from the Master first before we strike." Karai said, knowing that she didn't want to fail her father again.

"Yes, ma'am." The voice said again before going silent again.

Karai stared through her binoculars at the two on the railings, a smirk appearing on her face. Her targets were acquired; her mission would not be a failure, and she wouldn't afford to lose again to these vigilantes. That girl - Lauren, who had the audacity to have a silent death glare with her at the school earlier today would be her first choice to take down. The little girl - how dare she try to one up her?! Oh, revenge had never felt so bittersweet.

"You're all mind, little bitches." Karai whispered while continuing to scout her targets.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hahaha, hello lovies! Sorry for the delay, but I wanted to get into Lauren and Leonardo's minds for a bit on how they feel about being leaders and sacrificing their dreams and desires for the responsibilities of being the oldest in their families. I know you want more and you shall have more :P I'll see you guys in the next chapter. Reviews are welcomed.**


	17. Enter the Shredder

**Author's Note: Hello, lovelies. I really need to start updating more on this than what I've put into lately, but with work killing me with stress, I haven't had a lot of time posting like I should. I hope you guys will like the story more since I'll be putting in some action scenes coming up. Plus, I may have a HUGE surprise for you - who knows? You'll have to read on :P **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Rachel and Raphael sat on the couch in the living room, lounging about while watching Michelangelo and Erica play Mario Kart on the flat screen TV. For some odd reason, Rachel felt exhausted, and not in a physical way either. The stress with what happened earlier that day still clouded her mind; to say she wasn't scared, heh, she wouldn't say it to any of her sister. She was petrified; terrified with what was going on, despite her putting on a facade of pure determination and stubborn attitude. She felt claustrophobic when she was in the dark, no lights on to steer them on where they were going. It was as if they were being guided by a blind intuition, one that they felt like they knew too well; a sense of trust and knowledge that they never knew they had that morning, like a second instinct called to them and pulled them out of danger to their safe haven. Rachel was unsure at the moment, and that made her more agitated with who that man was and why he was so interested in her and her sisters. Sure, she didn't get along with them a lot of times, but they were still family and nothing would tear them apart.

Rachel had grabbed herself and Raphael a couple of beers, without the knowledge of Lauren and sat back on the couch while contemplating on the game that was transpired on the screen.

"This is good beer." Raphael grumbled, making her smirk on knowing her alcohol. She wasn't an alcoholic, but the occasional beer every once in a blue moon was what she needed. Sneaking it around Lauren's back was always a challenge in itself, but she would often do it when she felt agitated or under lots of stress and pressure from the school work. But tonight was a night of relaxation, and maybe a good night's sleep. She noticed that Raphael wasn't trying to one up her, or maybe he was waiting for her to start the banter; she was unclear on his intentions at the moment, but the way he looked relaxed and leaning back on her couch while sipping on the beer was a sight she could get used to, as long as no one else knew about it of course.

"Glad you like it. Got it over in Germany a while back. You know how hard it is to sneak something like this into the house?" Rachel smirked, looking up to the red clad turtle, and took a swig of her beer.

"Not the greatest, tastes like shit. I prefer sake." Raph said as he turned his attention to the girl next to him. He noticed that she wasn't wearing a lot of makeup, and he liked that. He wasn't too keen on the goth look, but the way her hair was laid across her shoulders made him want to caress the silky strands. Almost. He knew there was something about this girl that made him even more compelled to protect her, but at the same time, she aggravated him to no end. The constant one ups she tried to pull on him made him even more mad, but tonight, it was a calming night for everyone. He was worried about her, even though his brothers knew he cared, he wouldn't say it out loud. He still had a trust issue with her, and hoped to resolve it sometime soon.

"What's that shit?" Rachel growled as she looked up at the red clad turtle.

"It's a Japanese alcohol, but you drink it while it's hot."

"Hmm, sorry. Never heard of it."

"You should get some. It's a lot better than this shit."

"I'll see what I got in the refrigerator next time. Jackass." Rachel mumbled, knowing she was going to start another banter war.

"Bitch."

"Asshat."

"Narcissist."

"Cockbite."

"_Hanamizu mukatta buta." _Raphael swore in Japanese, which he rarely ever did and that shut her up fast. She huffed at him and returned her attention to the screen while taking another swig of her beer. He smirked and wrapped an arm around her while having his large hand play with the crown of her head, feeling the silky strands of her hair beneath his scaly touch. Rachel tensed for a moment, then leaned her head to lie on top of his large shoulder and sigh in the affectionate touch he was giving her. He smirked, beaming down from the corner of his eye to see her relaxed.

"That feels nice." Rachel mumbled, her mind going blank from the immediate touch.

"Don't get used it it." Raphael grumbled while continuing to lull her into a relaxing state. He had won, for now.

XXXX

Leonardo and Lauren stood outside by the railings, her hand never leaving his warm grasp. She liked the feeling, it brought a soothing and calming air to her body, which was something she craved for a while. It was as if he were a missing piece of a puzzle she had been trying to perfect and needed that one piece to complete the work. But, she knew that there was much to talk about between the two teenage leaders.

"What is it?" Lauren asked as she wanted to get to the point of him bringing her out of her home.

"I wanted to talk to you alone for some time, Lauren. I felt that we need to clear some things up between us." Leonardo said, his piercing blue gaze never leaving hers. She could get lost in those eyes of his, but he was right. There were some things that they needed to clear away between them before it got more complicated between them.

"There are . . . enemies that we face on a nightly basis; enemies that we alone can fight, and we don't want you girls to get caught up in it. The Foot Clan, you know very well about. We've been tracking their movements for the last few months, wondering what they were trying to do. But we don't have any leads; we know for a fact that the Shredder is behind all of this." Leonardo began explaining, knowing that he didn't want to keep a secret between him and Lauren. He wanted to be as brutally honest as he could, letting himself unchained and unhindered with the responsibilities that being a leader held him back from telling her.

"Who is the Shredder?" Lauren asked as she watched him cringe at the name. He breathed deeply, and walked over to stand in front of her, his eyes searching hers, trying to comprehend that he needed to let her know everything that their enemies would try to accomplish.

"Someone you should not be concerned with."

"Leonardo, if we're going to be around you guys, you need to come clean about everything."

"I just feel like you'll get hurt even more if you know of his existence."

Lauren felt a pang of guilt rise inside her chest, feeling like she should be a part of his world. He held up a wall between them; the eleven years that separated them from one another brought up walls of being an adult. She wanted to have him open up; she needed him to be truthful to her, no matter how hurtful it would be. She leaned closer to him, and peered up into his eyes, silently pleading to let her in his world.

"Leo . . . please. Tell me who Shredder is."

He sighed heavily, and looked into her eyes. He knew there was no going back; he knew how important being a leader was to his family, how important she was to him. He wanted to keep her safe, but her being stubborn about knowing the enemies he and his family fought every night was a secret he wished to remain hidden from her. But seeing as how she was just as determined as he was, he knew there was little choice in the matter. The truth had to be told.

"He is the monster who controls the Foot Clan; a great, powerful but dark warrior who is skilled in the dark art of ninjitsu. He's had an iron grip for years in this city, and no one had the nerve to stop him. We - we were created as weapons, and we know the world would never accept us. We knew that one day, it would need us, and we would be there to stop him. We did, for a while, until we saw you in the room with him this morning. He's the psychopath that tried to take you girls from the school. He may not look it, but he is a powerful enemy, and not someone you should be taking head on. Just the fact that you know about us, let alone are around us, is putting you girls in even more danger than you already are in. I - I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I . . . " Leonardo explained, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides while boring down at Lauren, who knew where he was coming from.

She knew that there was something about the man in front of them at the school today, and to think, that was the Shredder. She knew there was no going back; her and her sisters were already in over their heads when they went down into the subway station that fateful night. She knew there was a risk in being around the turtles, but she knew damn well that she wasn't going to let this go. She needed Leonardo, like a lifeline that was hanging in front of her as if it were some mere treat that caught her attention and teased her with its forbidden taste. Lauren brought her hand up to his cheek, and stroked the scaly skin gently beneath her fingertips. She knew the sacrifice that he was making as a leader; risking his family and himself every night to keep the city streets safe and free of crime, an endless battle that he struggled with not only above the sewers but also with himself. She could read him; he was struggling with his feelings for her, as was she with him. A countless battle raged between their consciousnesses, a duel of two battle hardened warriors who needed to feel alive again, and not on the battlefield. They both craved for that one night, just one night, where they can strip themselves of their duties.

"Leo . . . I already know the risks you're taking just by talking to me right now. I know the risks your're taking by having your family exposed up here, where you know that someone will spot you, and run for their lives screaming or start shooting at you. I've also been taking risks by leading my sisters, hoping that they could have their passions and I let mine simmer down the drain. That's why I lead my sisters, knowing that they couldn't handle the responsibility of being in charge. You are a warrior of honor; a strong leader, one who is deserving to have someone by your side. I know there will be bumps in the road, and there might be times you and me bump heads, but that's the risk of being a leader. And I'm not going to allow eleven years and stubborn leadership duties keep us from trying to get to know one another better, as long as you're willing to meet me halfway." Lauren said while caressing his cheek in her hand.

XXXX

Karai looked on from the neighboring rooftop with her binoculars in hand, staring at the scene with the girl and that interesting vigilante. There was something peculiar about him; it sparked some kind of interest within her, like a moth to a flame, tempting her to come closer to him but knowing to keep a reasonable distance from him as well. Karai felt a pang of anger within her chest, the little bitch was trying to be in cahoots with this creature - this monstrosity that was hidden deep from the city all these years. She knew it was time to move in for the attack. She heard her ear piece go off, and she tapped in to hopefully hear the words she longed for all night.

"_Kyō wa i!_" Karai said in her native tongue.

"_Anata wa menomaede mokuhyō o motte imasu ka?" _Her master's voice rang through her head, and giving her a smile of satisfaction to know that it was he who would be giving her the command.

"_Hai. Watashitachiha, kame to menomaede on'nanoko o motte iru. Watashi wa zokkō shinakereba naranai ka._" Karai answered, pleading on the inside that the command would be now.

"_Watashi ni on'nanoko o jisan shite kudasai. Araibu. Sore ga toru mono wa nani demo, karera ga ikite iru koto o kakuninshitekudasai._" Her master ordered, the smile that Karai pulled on her face large and glowing. She finally had the command she was waiting for all night, and now was the time to move in for the attack.

"Hai." Karai simply answered as she went offline with her master, and pulled down her binoculars to scout the area once more.

XXXX

Lauren stared into his eyes and saw what she wanted - no, needed to see. His soul stripped bare of its armor, no leader facade behind it. She saw him for the turtle he was; not weak or less of an honorable samurai. He was what she needed, a rock to bear in front of a raging storm, someone to reinforce her that everything will be alright, and that she'll stand by his side.

"You don't have to do this alone, Leo." Lauren said as she stepped closer to him, knowing how stubborn he could be as a leader. She didn't want him nor his family to fight this battle alone; they had allies within her and her sisters. Two families that fought for the same thing meant so much to her, she couldn't bear to let Leonardo fight his battles alone. He and his brothers were different, yes, but that didn't matter to her.

"Yes we do, Lauren." Leo answered, looking deep into her eyes, and saw no deception within them. She wanted to help him; no matter the costs, no matter the risks or stakes at hand, she wanted to be by his side and help him fight the wrongs in this city. He and his brothers were different, there was no change in that. But he saw how the girls were relaxed around them; how they felt no fear towards them, and felt as if their appearances never mattered to them. He wanted that; he craved that acceptance from society. He knew how they were created, but he saw that Lauren didn't care for that. She was as stubborn as he was, and that made him realize how much more she meant to him. How precious she was and how she would do anything just to keep him around.

He walked up to her, and cupped her cheek in his large hand, peering down into her eyes. Those endless seas of royal ocean blue, sparkling within the city lights around them, which highlighted the hues even more. He saw devotion; responsibility; a secret desire that he alone would only be allowed to crack open and exhume from her. He stroked her cheek with his thumb, and watched her shiver in delight from his touch. That unconditional love she held for him as a child all those years ago was still there. He felt a struggle inside him; tearing in half with the responsibility of a leader to his clan while having the desire of being carefree and loving to this beautiful girl he fell for eleven years ago.

"Lauren . . . _Watashi ga aisuru yuiitsu no, watashi no kokoro._" Leonardo whispered gently, his voice a chorus of soft whispers blending together.

Lauren couldn't understand fully what he said, but it made her heart soar. She was here, really here with him. Standing on the rooftop of Manhattan, looking into the very blue eyes of the turtle boy who held her heart all those years ago. A passion of reliving that memory coming back in full force, throttling her into a submission that her mind played for her and her alone. He leaned in slowly, his head coming down to her while their bodies came closer to one another, touching ever so slightly. She gasped softly, her breath lost as she felt the gentle touch of his body against hers; the feeling of being treasured so delicately and possessively was almost too much for her to handle. Lauren leaned her head up while closing her eyes, praying that she would feel that delicious lick of temptation between the two. That torturous dance of licking passion that craved to be unhinged and let loose between them was almost there.

Leonardo closed his eyes, hoping that he could feel that sensation of wanting. That one, small chance to feel Lady Love's fire between the two young teenage leaders. He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her body flush against his while feeling her hands press on his shoulder pads; her warmth almost burning his plastron, causing his mind to blank for a tiny second.

XXXX

Karai looked on with disgust, the hatred she felt for that girl was more than enough for her to pull out her radio and give the order.

"_Kōgeki_!" Karai hissed as she couldn't stand to watch the scene anymore.

The plan was set in motion.

XXXX

Michelangelo and Erica were in the hallway that lead to the bedrooms, chattering like hyperactive chipmunks who had too much sugar. She had been desperate to show him her comic book collection for so long that she was bouncing for joy when she pulled out her boxes from her bedroom closet and filled them in the hallway to show off to Mikey. He looked on in shock as she kept pulling out box after box of comic books, each in very good condition and by year that they came out. He was jealous; he watched her eyes lit up when she saw how surprised he was at her collection. The girl had very good taste in her reading materials, and he knew how much she wanted to show off to him.

"I've got Avengers #5, X-Men: Apocalypse #3, Civil War #2 -"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Civil War?! Why the hell do you have that? That's, like, one of the most crazy and stupidest comic series to come, right?" Mikey argued, knowing that he wouldn't even read that.

"What? No way, it's one of the best series I've read in a long time, besides Silver Sentry of course. And it's not that bad of a story line." Erica countered as she held up a box and threw it on the ground while marching up to him, pretending to be mad at the same time. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, and stared at him with a fury and a pout on her lips.

"Dudette, you know I can't take you seriously with that pouty face right?" Michelangelo jested, smiling at her "angry" face that she was trying to make.

Who was she kidding? The girl couldn't be mad, even if it was something over a petty comic book. She smiled and giggled at him while wrapping her arms around him. He returned the hug as well, holding her tightly and close to him as possible. She was a bright light in his life; their memories of children playing and roasting marshmallows was enough to keep him going over the years. He never gave up on her; he felt like they would meet again and it came true. He would rather be with her and his brothers than have nothing at all. She made him feel happy; she gave him a reason to look into bright and sunny days. Her smile alone made the bad days go away and bring the sunshine from behind the clouds. Her smell - God, her smell alone was enough to bring him to his knees and look up at her. Her honey brown eyes bore into his baby blue orbs, searching for something to make him laugh and smile more.

"Dude, I never want to be away from you. You're, like, kryptonite to me; you're my Superman, only in a shell and with killer ninja skills." Erica beamed down at him, her smile never leaving her face. She placed both hands on his cheeks, and held his gaze with hers.

He would've kept his gaze if he hadn't seen a shadow move by the windows of the hallway. He stood up abruptly, and pulled her close to his plastron while hiding against the wall of the hallway, daring whoever was there to show themselves and try to take his girl away from him. He felt Eri shake beneath his grasp, not knowing what was going on with the atmosphere.

"Mikey?" Eri whispered, asking what was going on.

"Dudette, you don't have any neighbors on your roof, right?" Michelangelo asked her, his gaze looking past the curtain and out into the open night where another building was in sight.

"No, why?"

"We've got company." Mikey said as he and Eri backed away from window and began going back into the living room, hoping the others would sense that something wasn't right.

XXXX

The Foot soldiers were outside the girls' door, knowing full well that the door was locked from the inside. They planted bombs on the door's flat surface, hooking wires and pushing buttons to set it off. They moved away as the clock began ticking from 30 seconds.

"We have orders."

"Tranqs."

"Take 'em alive!"

XXXX

Mikey and Eri ran into the living room as Leonardo and Lauren were running in from being outside, closing and locking the sliding doors shut while pulling the curtains closed so no one would see them.

"Dudes, we saw something outside."

"So did we, Mikey." Leonardo said, knowing full well that there was a fight about to come to them.

"What's going on?" Donatello said as he helped Danielle from her spot on the table and walked over to the other two pairs, not sure what was happening.

"We got company. They know of you guys." Raphael said as he and Rachel joined the group.

"We gotta get out of here." Rachel said, knowing that this was going to be a fight coming on.

"How do we get outta here?" Eri asked as she looked around the room, trying to find some way out. She noticed Lauren going behind the couch, pulling out a pair of katana swords, a pair of sais, a bo staff and a set of tessen fans with spikes on the ends of them. She rejoined the group, and gave the girls each of their weapons.

"Looks like we're going in fighting, girls." Lauren said as she knew what this meant. The fight was on.

Just as the girls were split into pairs with the turtles to fan out around the home, an explosion hit the front door and the hallway of the condo at the same time. Michelangelo, Erica, Raphael and Rachel huddled behind the pillars in the living room to avoid the blast. The girls were guarded and protected by the boys, their shells acting as shields for them. Danielle, Lauren, Donatello and Leonardo flew in the air, and landed on the ground while trying to recover from the blast at the front door.

Each pair groaned at the pain, knowing that this was going to a fight for survival. Leonardo held Lauren close to him, her back pressed tightly against his plastron while he looked over at Donatello, who held Danielle carefully to him while inspecting for any serious injuries. Her glasses were knocked off, but that was it.

"Are you alright?" Leo asked her, watching for any signs of injuries that Lauren might've sustained.

"I'm good." Lauren answered while smiling lightly up at him.

Their moment was cut short when they all heard the sounds of heavy footsteps coming into the living room. All looked up and couldn't believe their eyes. It was a trick of the mind, it had to be! There was no way they could be seeing what they were really seeing. A man in a silver samurai warrior's armor came storming into the room, looking at the four couples. His armor glowed silver in the dusty atmosphere; his aura heavy with darkness and intent to kill and maim anyone and anything that stood in his way. He had to have been at least six and a half feet tall, if not more. The armor was a mix of ancient tradition and modern warfare - there was no mistaking it. It really was him!

"Shredder." Leonardo growled as he stared at his most hated enemy.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! HAHAHA! You guys should know me by now that I have to bring him into the picture soon! This is my surprise for you. He will be in the next chapter :P I have to keep you guys on the edge of your seats, and I thought this was the best way in doing it. This chapter had me almost on the complete of exhaustion. I have a hard time writing action scenes, so I hope you will forgive in it for being almost written hastily. I will work on that in the next chapter. I hope you guys will enjoy this little bit of deliciousness that will come together in the next chapter. I'll see you readers in the next chapter! Reviews are welcome as always!**


	18. Fight For Your Life

**Author's Note: Hello, lovelies. I'm so happy to be updating my story. I've seen you guys are surprised with my little bit of entering The Shredder in the previous chapter. Writing him in the story, so far, has been a challenge for me. While I've been trying to keep him within the 2k14 'verse, I'm almost trying to give him some intelligence (like the 2k3 series.) So I hope you guys will enjoy this little twist that I have in store for him. And I know you guys are on the edge of your seats from what transpired in the previous chapter, so I won't keep you waiting. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

It was impossible - absolutely impossible. There was no way that he was here; an illusion that was created in their minds, playing tricks on them to think he was really here in front of them. The myth; the fiend; the monstrosity behind the Foot Clan was standing in front of them all, staring them down with hatred and disgust for their existence. The mythological being stood in front of them; his silver armor blazing brightly in the dusty atmosphere while catching subtle lights of gold and bronze within the armor. He had razor knives within his arms, hidden behind the thick layers of metallic shields. The mask - that demented, evil helmet full of malice, deception and pure hatred.

"You freaks have been a thorn in my side for long enough." The Shredder said as he glared down at his enemies.

"Holy shit . . . so that's the Shredder." Rachel cursed to herself as she glanced up at the silver samurai armor in front of them.

The Shredder looked at the turtles, and then came to realization that they had company with them. What made it even more sweeter to him was the fact that the company was the four girls he had seen earlier that morning. The sister would make a perfect addition to his clan; not only that, but they were worth more to him than he had realized earlier. The files on them were astounding, and he knew right then and there that these girls would be his.

"Foot soldiers - bring me the girls, alive!" The Shredder order as the soldiers began to advance onto the couples with their guns trained on each of them.

Donatello looked over at them, and realized that there weren't bullets in the gun, but tranquilizer darts. He looked down at Danielle, who held fear in her eyes while looking up at him. He knew that he had to work fast while keeping her safe as well as the others safe. He watched her grab her bo staff that Lauren gave her and tried to move, but he halted her movements. He leaned down and whispered into her ear.

"Dani, when I say so, don't let go of my hand." Donnie whispered to her as he kept his eyes on the Foot soldiers advancing onto them. Danielle nodded and gripped his arm tight, her body pressed against the muscle of his arm that he thought she was glued to him.

He looked over to see Leonardo doing the same to Lauren, who nodded his head in Donatello's direction. He knew how big of a chance it would be to get them out alive, but with the Shredder in front of them, the chances would be slim to none. He pushed his glasses up on his nose bridge, and slowly maneuvered Danielle behind him while keeping his eyes trained on Leonardo, waiting for the orders from their fearless leader.

Leonardo nodded to his brother as he pulled out a smoke bomb hidden from his belt. He looked onward to Donnie, and knew it would only be a distraction for the time being; Donatello pulled out a smoke bomb from his utility belt while pulling a small mirror to look behind him. He watched in the reflection as both Michelangelo and Raphael grabbed smoke bombs themselves and were waiting for Leo's orders.

"Danielle, hold onto my shell." Donatello whispered as he grabbed her and pulled her as tight to him as humanly possible while tucking the mirror back into the pocket of his utility belt.

Danielle nodded and grabbed onto his shell tightly while holding onto her bo staff, and he held onto her very tightly while looking back at Leonardo, waiting for the orders.

The Foot soldiers closed in on them, their guns trained heavily but not firing yet. The Shredder would be the only one to give the orders, if he didn't have his way of things. He began to walk closer, but keeping his distance away from his enemies, calculating for them to try and stop him from having his victory. These girls would be his, and these freaks of nature wouldn't stop him; he would win, no matter the cost.

"Hand over the girls, freaks!" The Shredder ordered roughly, pointing at Danielle and Donatello.

Donnie looked over at Danielle, who whimpered and shook like a leaf. He wouldn't hand her over, not to Shredder, not to anyone. He cared for her too damn much - wait, was it love? Is this what love felt like? He knew he would do anything to keep her safe, including fight the Shredder head on. His heart pounded heavily in his chest, and by instinct, gripped onto her tightly to the point of pain, but Danielle didn't seem to notice.

Leonardo watched how Donatello as well as his two other brothers were holding onto the girls tightly, waiting for his command. He looked at Lauren, and pulled her tightly to his chest, his arm taunt and tight around her as if she would be ripped away from him any second. He wouldn't let that happen; after feeling what he felt was love between him and Lauren on the rooftop's railings, he would be damned to hell before letting her go in the hands of the Foot, let alone Shredder.

"Hang on tight, Lauren." Leonardo whispered into her hair, smelling the scent of fear radiating off of her.

Lauren shook her head, and gripped onto his midsection before relaxing her breathing somewhat. He looked up to the Shredder, who advanced towards him and Lauren. His breath caught in his throat, one katana gripped in his hand that was wrapped around his girl, the smoke bomb hiding in his hand, he knew what must be done.

"3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . . NOW!" Leo shouted, giving the order to his brothers.

The four turtle brothers threw down their smoke bombs, and gripped onto the girls as the room became enveloped with a thick, heavy and blackened smoke that covered the entire condo. The Foot soldiers as well as the Shredder covered themselves from the initial blast of the bombs, coughing from the smell of the thick smoke that engulfed the building.

XXXX

Karai watched in awe as the top floor of the building was inflamed with smoke; the condo seemed to almost burst from the amount of bombs going off at the same time. She was worried - legitimately worried that her master, her sensei, was in danger from those freaks of nature. She threw down her binoculars, ready and geared up for the fight while holstering her katana on her back when she noticed something fly out of the condo. She glanced closer, and notice four large shadows leap from the smoke filled building, and jump across the sky to the other rooftop while carrying something in their grasps. It was the turtles - they escaped! And they had the girls in their hands. Perfect - the next phase of the plan was set in motion.

"Phase one has been completed. The targets are on the move, heading northeast with the packages." Karai spoke into her earcom link, awaiting for further instructions.

"Drive them over to the school on the upper east side of Manhattan. The trap is set and ready for your men to take the stage." Eric Sacks said over the intercom as Karai smiled at the answer she received. The fools were playing right into their hands, and they didn't realize it.

XXXX

The Shredder coughed behind his helmet at the smoke that he inhaled, his enemies were getting better than he thought. These mutant freaks of nature were beginning to be a thorn in his side, and he had been so close many times to obliterate them. But, seeing as how they hold the four prizes in their grasps, he would do anything to retrieve them. As the smoke cleared, he had come to realize that his enemies had escaped as well as sliced up many of his men. Now, they had his full, undivided attention, and they were now on the move from him and his army. He knew he had to have those girls, at any cost, no matter what.

"FIND ME THOSE FREAKS! BRING THE GIRLS ALIVE!" The Shredder roared, his voice deafening and commanding his Foot soldiers to hunt them down.

XXXX

The turtles were fast - faster than anything they had ever seen. It was as if they were shadows; ghosts of the night that seemed they were there, but really weren't. To the city below them, they were mere myths - figments of the mind's imagination. But to the underbelly of the streets, they were enemies - frightening heroes who blend in with the night and fight from the shadows. They were quick, leaping from one rooftop to the next, hoping to outrun the Foot soldiers and Shredder. Damning themselves to hell and back if they let that crazy bastard have their girls; they meant too much to each one of the turtle brothers, and they would not go down without a fight. They flew faster across the rooftops, holding onto their girls for dear life.

"How far are we from him?" Raphael asked, his breathing coming out in heavy, ragged pants as Rachel held onto him while trying to not look down to the city below them.

"About two point seven three miles and counting." Donatello answered, his grip on Danielle tightening while springing from one roof to the next.

"We gotta get them away from him, dudes. I don't want to lose dudette here!" Michelangelo yelled as Erica gripped onto his neck harder with her arms, her face buried in his thick neck.

"There's got to be a way to lose him. Donnie, you know anywhere we can drop them off?" Leonardo asked his brother while jumping from one light post of the next and hanging onto Lauren as tight as he could.

Donnie stopped on top of a lamp post, his feet balancing him and Danielle with ease as he held her in his right arm while looking up a map of Manhattan on his hologram designed on his left arm. He watched the program work and found them a safe hideaway for the time being - the school. It was the only option they had at that point. Danielle clung to Donnie, afraid that she would fall from his grip. She buried her head in the crook of his neck, panting heavily and shaking almost violently, her brown hair whipping slightly from the wind across his face. He tightened his grip on her, his left arm returning to cradle her closer to his chest, hearing her shaky breaths. He knew how terrified she was; her fear growing every second that he stalled from bringing her to safety.

"D-D-Donnie, don't let m-me go. Please!" Danielle whispered hoarsely, her voice full of pure terror.

"I'm not going to let you fall, Danielle. I promise." Donnie whispered back as he gripped her harder to his body, and leaping from the lamp post while cradling her to him. She wouldn't open her eyes, she was too terrified to see what was below them. She trusted Donnie, and that enough made her feel a bit better about the situation.

Donatello rejoined his brothers, gaining up on them quickly while glancing back to make sure they weren't being followed.

"The school is the only option at this point." Donnie told Leo, who nodded in bitter understanding.

Leo knew that the school wasn't the best place for any of the four girls; he knew damn well that it had to be a trap somewhere. He felt Lauren start to shiver, whether it was from the wind, the adrenaline rush or of being afraid, he was unsure of. He knew the girls weren't looking forward to going back to the school, but what choice did they have? He wouldn't risk bringing them to the lair, knowing that the Foot would follow them closely. The girls' home wasn't safe anymore, and wouldn't risk bringing them back there. Their only option was the school, hopefully no one would find them there.

"We don't have much of a choice. We'll hideout at the school." Leo ordered, his legs sprinting faster across the rooftops while changing direction to the school.

"Fuck me sideways, man. I don't want to go back there." Rachel groaned as she clung to Raph's body for comfort, knowing that words wouldn't need to be exchanged between the two. He could read her through her body language, and it scared him on the inside, despite his tough exterior.

"I ain't lettin' em take you, creampuff." Raphael said to her, her body tightening in his grasp while he felt her nails dig into his neck, almost hard.

"Don't call me creampuff, asshat." Rachel growled, her nails going harder into his scaly skin, but she knew it didn't affect him.

XXXX

The school was quiet, eerily quiet; the shadows danced on the brickwork of the school like little puppets made from a candle lit flame that made no appearance. No life was out on this very evening, and no one was around; the atmosphere was thick and heavy, an eerie feeling of mischief and devilry were at work and yet, no one could see beyond the quietness of the school grounds.

The turtles landed softly on the rooftop of the building directly above the gymnasium, their footsteps quiet and quick to the windows. Lauren rushed over to the window, and began to use her katana to drive it open so they would sneak inside. The window let loose, and she quickly grabbed onto it while thrusting it open and allowing everyone else inside first. Her safety wasn't as important as everyone else's, and she knew that something seemed off.

"Do you think we were followed?" Lauren asked Leonardo as he walked over to her while looking around and scanning the atmosphere.

"If I know Shredder, he's probably got eyes everywhere. Come on." Leo answered as he grabbed her and pulled her against him while sliding into the gym and landing with a thud on the wooden floor.

The gymnasium was too quiet as he set her down on her feet. His eyes scanned the area, and knew that something was up. This seemed too easy, and it set everyone into overdrive mode with weary and caution. The air was too thick, suffocating them with an intense aura of unease, the shadows almost playing mind games with each of them. There was no movement within the tight knit of the couples, each trying to decipher what the next move was without causing a disturbance within the school. The room was too dark, limiting their eyes to shadows and ebony illusions.

"Great, now what?" Raphael said as he held Rachel close to him, his sais out ready for anything.

The lights suddenly came on, blinding all four couples with the intense brightness the room instantly gave. They groaned and shielded their eyes, not knowing what just happened. After the spots and blindness left them for a brief moment, the looked around to see what was their worse fear: more Foot soldiers with guns trained on them. But no sign of Shredder, or at least, at the very moment.

"Fuck me." Rachel growled as she pulled her pair of sais out and looked around them to see how many there were.

"This bites." Erica muttered as she drew open her tessen, the feel of the blades running down the silky material of the fan at her fingertips.

All were at attention, their weapons drawn and at a stance, ready for anything to come their way. The Foot soldiers trained their weapons, their fingers at the triggers, waiting for the order to attack.

XXXX

Karai looked on through the binoculars, her smile never leaving her face as she watched the spectacle below her on the rooftop.

"Ready for your orders, ma'am." a Foot soldier said, his voice awaiting her command.

"Attack!" Karai yelled through the intercom, her smile growing wider.

XXXX

The Foot soldier began firing at the couples, their bullets weren't exactly bullets. The tranquilizer darts - filled with a chemical to make them fall asleep was inside them, and they were ready to take them down.

"SHIT!" All eight of them yelled as everyone dashed away from each other, avoiding the darts as much as possible.

Leonardo and Lauren began swiping their katana swords at the oncoming soldiers, their blades swift, quick and clean with precision on deflecting the darts as well as disarming their guns from their hands. The few who tried to take them head on, were left on the floor lifeless as the blades kept coming in one fluid motion between the two leaders.

"Lauren, get your sisters out of here! We'll hold them off!" Leo yelled as he looked behind him to see Lauren, who pulled her katana from a soldier's chest and kicked him onto the ground.

"Like hell I'm leaving you! You're not alone in this, Leo! I told you that before!" Lauren yelled back, her katana sword slicing through the soldiers with accuracy and clean cutting precision.

Leonardo shook his head, knowing how stubborn she really was. But, despite the stubbornness, he was glad that she wasn't leaving him. He and his brothers need all the help they could get right now. He saw, for a brief moment, how much of a true leader and warrior she was in battle. Her eyes clouded with concentration; her body fluid and quick on evading the attacks; her katana swiping at every enemy clean and with grace. He never knew how much she had changed within the blink of an eye, and he be damned to hell and back if he let her out of his sight, let alone out of his reach.

XXXX

Rachel and Raphael punched, kicked, stabbed and maimed at everything that came at them; the two hotheads working well in tandem unison, knocking out all of their opponents like they were mere children who wanted to play rough. His sais went through one soldier, slicing through his arms and chest like a knife in hot butter, and kicked the dead soldier down to the ground with his foot.

"Listen, shrimp. I got this, you go get outta here." Raphael said as he punched a soldier in the face, and turned around to face Rachel, who had already blood stained across her cheek. Not hers, thankfully, but it still irked him a bit to see blood on her beautiful face; despite the rough exterior she pulled, he could tell she was just as scared as he was on the inside.

"Shrimp?! I ain't no shrimp, you ass-eating, backstabbing cockbite! If anyone is going to one up you, it's gonna be me!" Rachel yelled as she punched an oncoming Foot soldier from behind Raphael, who was impressed with her attack and sensing the enemy while they were engaged in a one up contest with one another.

"You don't listen, do ya, small fry?" Raphael asked while grinning at her reaction.

"DON'T CALL ME SMALL!" Rachel bellowed as she sliced and diced her way around the soldiers, blocking their darts and cutting up whatever was in her way just to prove to him that she wasn't small or weak.

XXXX

Mikey and Eri were fighting just as hard as the others were, deflecting the flying darts from hitting either one of them. He had to admit, the dudette knew how to handle the tessen very well; her bladed fans spun in her hands with expertise and effortless grace. She was a babe, but on the battlefield, she was a harden chick who could kick ass and take names. She slit the throat of a Foot soldier, the blood spraying everywhere and got on her skin a little bit.

"Dude, I just got blood on me. Totally not cool." Eri grumbled as she flung her tessen across the room; its blades catching each and every Foot soldier by the throat, slicing through them and around them in a circle. She threw the other tessen in the other direction, both were slicing every neck that they could consider an enemy. Eri caught them in her hands, and watched as the Foot soldiers around her and Mikey fell to the ground, their blood only adding to the mess and sloppy puddles that were already created from their previous kills.

"Dudette, you're totally hot with those."

"Thank you, Mikey. Now come on, we gotta help our bros." Eri said as she smiled at him, and both ran over to lend their aid to the others.

XXXX

Donatello and Danielle were easily blocking the oncoming Foot soldiers themselves, their bo staffs twirling and knocking anything and everything from hitting them. The way Danielle moved around with her staff almost caught him off guard; her fluid gracefulness, her eyes trained in the battle, her precision almost technical and machine-like. He began to wonder how long it took her to learn this, but quickly pushed that aside as he knocked out another Foot soldier from behind him.

"Dani, run! I'll cover you!" Donnie yelled, hoping she would have enough sense to run from the battle and somewhere safe.

"I'm not leaving you behind, Donnie! I can - AHH!" Danielle yelled as she felt a dart hit her shoulder, causing her to fall to the ground while clutching her shoulder. He turned around and saw her fall to the ground, her hand clutching her shoulder as he saw a dart sticking out from her precious skin.

"DANIELLE!" Donnie yelled as he felt his blood boil with repressed anger. He never lost control; he was the pacifist of the four brothers, despite the arguing and fighting between them. He felt a wave and anger and relinquished rage consume him, and he began striking harder with his bo staff. He hit everything and everyone that was in his way, hearing and almost feeling the sickening crunches of the skulls from the enemies that stood in his way of his beautiful Danielle. He moved faster, his blood pumping harder through his veins, begging his body to go beyond his limits and fight until everyone that was in his way was dead. He never felt those thoughts run through his mind before, but seeing Danielle, it was pure animalistic instinct that took over his mind, claiming Danielle as his precious mate.

He swung his bo staff as hard as he could, and watched in pure adrenaline rush as the last Foot soldier around them fell to the ground, his head crushed in from the blow he delivered. Donatello panted heavily, and knelt down to Danielle, who struggled to keep her eyes open as he pulled out the tranquilizer dart from her shoulder and cradle her close to his chest. He panted, looking down into her beautiful teal eyes that threatened to close on him. He needed to keep her awake; where the hell was the coffee when he really needed it?

"Dani? Danielle, please stay awake. Come on, stay awake for me." Donnie whispered as he tried to shake her awake, hoping his voice alone would be enough to keep her up until they were safe at another location.

"Donnie? I feel . . . tired . . ." Danielle said, her eyes struggling to keep open and see him.

"No, no, no, no, no. Please, Dani. For me, please stay awake for a while longer." Donatello pleaded, his eyes wide with fright as he cradled her closer to him, praying that she would stay awake for a while longer.

"Donnie . . . " Danielle smiled as she cradled her head under his chin, her breath ghosting his neck and sending shivers up his spine and shell.

He hated to do it, but under the circumstances, he was given little choice. He pinched her hard on the arm, and she yelped out loud while tearing herself from his chest, and glancing up at him behind the large black glasses she bore on her face.

"OW! That hurt!" Dani yelled as she looked up at him, irritated that she was taken out of her drug induced trance.

"I'm sorry." Donnie apologized while rubbing her arm where he pinched her hard. She smiled at him, and leaned a little closer to him.

Before she could lean close, the sound of shattered glass broke the silence, and all turned around as the Shredder fell from the rooftop above them, and landed on his feet. The blood from his fallen Foot soldiers splattered across the armor of his legs, the thick red liquid displayed on him as if they were trophies of war. He stood up and looked around, noticing his fallen soldiers, and glared at the couples, who gathered around one another close while taking up their stances to their enemy.

"You are all mine now, freaks!" The Shredder growled as he pointed to the turtles and the girls. The fight was on.

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**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hello lovelies. -Falls face down onto the floor exhausted- I'm sorry for the delay, but writing action scenes is a little tricky for me, but I do hope the wait is worth it to you. I finally got to get some action with the girls and the boys :) It wasn't easy writing this you know :P Anyway, hope you guys enjoy the chapter for I'll be working on the next one very shortly. Reviews are always welcome :) **


	19. A New Player In The Game

**Author's Note: Hello everybody! Welcome back to another awesome chapter of TMNT! I hope you guys enjoyed the previous chapter, since I've been working on it for almost a week straight just trying to get the action scenes right. It's not easy trying to make these in my head and put them on the laptop screen. I even have to read over my work before I post it up on here to make sure it'll pop out for you guys! I can't believe I have over 100 reviews already! You guys are freaking awesome! I'll do my best to keep the chapters coming up and pulling off more amazing scenes between the turtles and the girls. And now, without further adieu, here's the next chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

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The Shredder was seething - anger coursing through his cold veins as he glared at the freaks before him. They massacred his soldiers, toyed with them as if they were nothing more than mere puppets to be cut down. He was more enraged than ever; his strong soldiers he had personally trained for years, skilled assassins that were used as ploys, were cut down like pieces of paper that were too thin. He looked around, noticing the blood pooling around the floor, puddles of thick red rivers soaking the floor with the smell of war. The Shredder was a formidable warrior - a skilled master of the art of ninjitsu, and he would not be beaten or outdone by four freaks of nature and four little girls.

"You are mine, freaks! I will finish you myself!" The Shredder growled as he pointed his finger at the four turtles, his armor glowing bright silver under the florescent lighting of the gymnasium.

The turtles looked at one another, then looked at each of the girls who stood next to them. Their bodies were shaking visibly, making the adrenaline in their blood pump faster. They were backed into a corner; they had just taken out the Foot soldiers, and now they had to deal with the Shredder. Damn them all for being so cocky and naive, but this wasn't going to be a short fight; they would give it their all, just to keep their girls safe.

Leonardo looked at Lauren, noting her breath coming in pants, her eyes trained on the enemy in front of her; her hands gripping the katana harder while keeping her stance low. He saw the intense look in her eyes - a slight fear settling in her royal blue orbs that wavered for a brief moment before seeing the conflicting emotions dance in her eyes. He knew what she was putting at stake here - her life, her sisters' lives, her humanity, her chance at freedom from the dark underworld of the ninja. This life wasn't meant for her nor her sisters; they should be happy, free and living in a secluded life without knowing them. But she chose this - she chose to be along side Leo, the same turtle who she fell in love with years ago as a child.

"Lauren -"

"Don't say it, Leonardo. I'm not leaving you." Lauren said with a finality in her voice. He smiled slightly at her decision, and pulled his gaze from her to look head on at the Shredder.

"Hey, Mikey. You remember that thing you used to say when we were kids?" Raphael asked as he stared at his enemy while gripping his sais. He pulled Rachel behind him, and turned to give her a glaring look before she opened her mouth. He wouldn't risk her getting hurt by this maniac, and he would go another round of having his shell cracked again before letting her get a single scratch on her skin.

"You made me promise to never say it again!" Michelangelo answered, his arm shoving Erica behind him and looking at his older brother incredulously.

"Forget about that! Still got one in the tank, right?" Raph asked as he smirked while looking at his youngest brother.

Mikey smiled big, and looked behind him to see Eri look at him with huge eyes. She wished she could really read minds, maybe she would know what the surfer turtle was really thinking. But, somethings are better left not knowing.

"I've been holding it in for years." Mikey answered, his nunchuks tight in his hands and swirling before him.

Donatello looked at Danielle, who was visibly shaking with fear beyond her wildest dreams, and ushered her behind his shell as he kept his gaze on the enemy before them. He had too much at stake here, and he knew what the chances of them walking out alive would be; as long as the girls were out of harm's way, he was alright with that. It was the way of the ninja; to keep those safe from the evil that spread in the underbelly of this city that would threaten their safety. He peered behind his shell to see her; the look in her teal eyes made him more than aware of how scared she was, and he wasn't going to let her go without a fight. His rational, logical mindset was kicked into overdrive, calculating numbers in his head for escape routes and percentages on their chances; ratios and fractions going berserk through his nerve-system, but his instinctual mindset was also put into overdrive. The mind of his animal side was creeping in; a shadow of another part of him he wished he never let unleashed was starting to show. It screamed in his mind to protect his mate at all costs; the word 'mate' screamed through him when he saw the tears running down her cheeks. The battle of two minds going into overdrive at once made his head throb, but he would not let this maniac lay a single finger on any part of his Danielle.

"Danielle . . . I made you a promise. I won't let him hurt you." Donatello vowed as he looked at her once before bringing his attention back to Shredder, who began to stalk towards them.

"COWABUNGA!" Michelangelo yelled as he, Raphael and Leonardo ran towards him with their weapons drawn, ready for blood to be spilled.

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Karai stood on top of the broken glass above the gymnasium, watching as her master was taking the turtles head on. She smirked, pleased with the fact that her sensei still had the same murderous intent he had all those years ago. She was in glee, seeing the turtles being showed up by a true, powerful master of the art of ninja was a thought that made her blood pump faster through her veins.

"_How is the master holding up, Karai?_" Eric Sacks' voice rang through the intercom, interrupting her view of the fight below.

"Very well. He is performing just as he was in his younger years." Karai answered as she took note in the style of the fighting these freaks were using.

"_The armor was designed to help with his skills on the battlefield. I suspect he will not need any help. But, we do have our other plans that need to be addressed._" Eric said on the intercom as Karai's smile left her face; she knew what he was talking about.

"Of course, the next phase will commence immediately." Karai said with a grim face as she watched the battle below continue.

When she adverted her gaze to the girls, her blood boiled higher. The face of Lauren caught her attention; the oldest sister looked on with a deep concentration on the fight, debating as to get involved or stay out of it. She was the one that Karai was after; she had some unfinished business with the young girl. It was time someone had put her in her rightful place.

"I have unfinished business to attend to." Karai said with malice laced in her voice as she turned off her intercom and jumped down from the rooftop onto the wooden flooring of the gymnasium.

XXXX

Eric Sacks sat in his chair while staring at the computer screen, his security cameras picking up all the activity that was going on within the school. He smiled as his master was taking the fight to the turtles, but it quickly vanished when he saw Karai jump into the picture. He had such promising hopes for her, but her rash decision at getting involved within the fight was a direct disobey of the orders that were strictly give by Master Shredder. He was not pleased whatsoever, but he knew what was to happen next.

He heard his personal phone ring on the side of his desk, and quickly looked to see who was contacting him. With a smile reaching his lips, he picked it up and answered the incoming call.

"Yes?"

"_I do not mean to bother at such an hour, Mr. Sacks. But I take it that the woman had disobey direct orders_?" A strong but polite male voice rang through on the other side.

"Unfortunately, yes. She seemed very rash as far as getting herself involved with a personal vendetta." Eric answered with regret heavy in his voice.

"_I see. Would you allow me to begin the next phase of the plan, Mr. Sacks? It is your call, of course._" The man said over the phone, his voice waiting for the instructions from his commander.

"Mr. Hun, you are more than obliged to commence the next phase. You and your men may begin." Eric answered as he hung up on the man, the smirk enlarging on his face.

What a treat it would be to see how his master will react to the next player in this game.

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Leonardo swung his katana sword at Shredder, the blade grazing the armor of his arm and not leaving a single scratch. He couldn't believe it - his katana hadn't left a mark on the armor at all. The Shredder grabbed Leo's sword in one hand, and threw him across the floor like he was a rag doll. His body skidded across the slippery floor, and made impact with the wall hard, cracks embedded into the wall as his shell made a sickening sound. He paused, and let a heavy breath out of his chest, his shell throbbing slightly from the pain. He felt behind his shell as best as he could, and couldn't feel any cracks that were made in his shell. A good sign, but not for a brief second that he stopped. He got back up on his feet, grabbing his katana swords from the floor, and ran back into the fight.

Raphael spun and swiped at Shredder with his sais, trying to land a blow onto the silver menace, but failing as he was kicked hard in the ribs, and flew to the side while landing on his side. He groaned hard, feeling as if his ribs were almost kicked inward, and his shell throbbed hard. The Shredder was pounced on Raphael, not giving the red clad turtle a chance to get up. His large armored boot slammed into his ribs, causing the pain to throb harder and faster.

"You are weaklings! Give me a fight!" The Shredder taunted as he kicked Raph harder in the ribs, and slammed his boot harder into his side.

Donatello and Michelangelo tried to sneak up behind the evil ninja master, but failed as Shredder turned around and slammed both his arms into the two oncoming turtles, sending them both into the floor hard. He returned his attention to Raphael, and began to grind his foot into the turtle's ribs, his foot not giving an inch.

"You are all weak! You are not worthy of ninja!" Shredder yelled as he continued to torment Raphael.

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Rachel looked on as she watched the Shredder was tormenting Raphael, his foot grinding harder and harder into his ribs. She couldn't stand it; she felt helpless watching him try to fight on the silver menace. She didn't know what to do, but she felt scared for him as well as herself. She was debating herself, wondering what the hell she should do. Her blood boiled hot, her skin felt like it was crawling along her bones, the hairs on her neck stood up on attention. She breathed heavily, her eyes almost bulging out of their sockets as she continued to watch him torment _her_ turtle. Her turtle, who tried to tell her to get the hell out while she had the chance, but she cursed her stubborn streak. Her damned stubborn attitude, not listening to him, was coming back in full force guilt. She couldn't handle it anymore. She was purely terrified, and she had enough of this bullshit!

"RAPHAEL!" Rachel yelled as loud as her lungs were capable of her body springing into action as she ran forward to protect her stubborn turtle while gripping her sais in both hands.

"Rachel, wait!" Lauren yelled to her sister as she tried to run after her, but something caught her attention from her peripheral vision.

She turned around to see Karai stalk her, her gaze unwavering from the oldest sister. Lauren steeled her gaze and gripped her katana harder in her hand, her eyes never leaving the oncoming female Foot soldier. They stared at one another, sizing each other as if two alpha females were about to do battle for their prized male. But Lauren knew that she wasn't fighting for her sexuality; she wasn't fighting for some prize, she was fighting for survival. This bitch was going down one way or another; she knew this day would come and damn it all for Karai to take on any of her other sisters. This fight was hers alone.

"Karai." Lauren uttered her name as if it were poison on her lips.

"Lauren. You and your sisters have been a thorn in my side." Karai said with venom laced in her voice, her dark green eyes trained on her opponent as she pulled out a smaller katana from behind her back while approaching the girl.

"Your fight is with me, Karai. This doesn't have anything to do with my younger sisters." Lauren stated as she moved towards Karai, her katana ready for battle.

The two women circled one another, their eyes never wavering, testing each other to see who would budge while gripping their weapons. This was a tense moment, and Lauren knew that Leonardo wouldn't be able to stop her from unleashing. Her blood began to boil, despite the calm and intimidating demeanor she etched onto her face. She stopped, and turned to face her opponent fully, her katana gripped as tightly in her hand as humanly possible.

"_Masu watashida, inu._" Lauren muttered as she took up her stance, her eyes never leaving Karai's face.

"_Misete, shōjo._" Karai muttered in Japanese, her eyes trained on the child in front of her.

The two charged at one another, their swords clashing with the sound of metal on metal repeatedly. The two tried to outmatch the other, their katanas trying to slice at the other with grace and precision.

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Leonardo spun in the air and kicked Shredder off Raphael, sending the enemy across the floor, but not losing his balance as he glared at the oldest terrapin. He took up his stance as he flared his blades from underneath his arms, the sharp blades ready to draw blood. Leo gripped his katana harder in his hands, and attacked Shredder, both his and his enemy's blades clashing with one another while in hopes of trying to draw the blood from one another. Leonardo dodged the attack that was meant to cleave his head off, only to watch as Rachel body slammed him into the floor, her sais gripped hard in her hands.

Raphael stared in complete disbelief as he watched Rachel take on Shredder, her movements flawless and quick. For a brief moment, he thought he saw her eyes change a brighter color, but it must've been a trick of the light. She dodged him with little movement, almost as if she weren't moving at all. He couldn't peel his eyes off her; the way her body moved with grace and deadly accuracy, her sais impaling the left armored arm, and listening to his enemy scream in agony as she kept her deathly grip on her weapons. She spun on her heel, spinning Shredder around and tossing him as hard as she could across the room while watching his body fly through the wall, breaking the drywall and collapsing in the heap of rubble.

Rachel gasped as heavily as possible, falling to her knees and keeping her grip on her sais. She had never felt so much adrenaline flow through her veins before. She had been in many fights within middle school and high school; she had hand to hand combat before, but never had she felt so alive, so full of pumped up energy. She felt like the Energizer bunny, but with so much electric juice flowing through her; she felt like she couldn't stop. She stood up on jellified limbs, turning around to see Raphael look at her in complete disbelief as he approached her, his large body staggering over.

"Are you out of your fucking mind?! What were you thinking!" Raphael yelled as he stood directly in Rachel's personal bubble space, demanding to know what was going through her mind.

"I ain't letting him touch you either, Big Red. You're - you mean too much, dammit! I'm the only who's gonna have your back, got it?" Rachel tried to say, knowing that she wasn't very good with emotions coming out of her mouth.

Raphael smirked, his creampuff was getting soft on him. He liked that just as much as he liked the bad girl exterior she displayed. He had never seen her move with such grace and beauty that for a moment, just a brief moment, he felt like he was watching an angel dance in front of him. But their brief touchy moment went away as Shredder came out of the rubble, his armor slightly dented from the impact of the force. He looked at the girls, his armor with needles out and ready to strike at anything. He was amazed; these girls were stronger than they looked, and he knew the cause for it as well. No one would be able to move with that much grace and power as much as these girls. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity to seize, and he would not miss this chance.

"You have a skill that no one has used in over a century. I must have it!" The Shredder said as he charged at them again, his arms flailing in the air while needles came soaring through the air in hopes of slicing into his enemies.

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Lauren and Karai continued to battle one another, their blades clashing and bracing one another's brute attacks. Neither one would give way to the other, and it would be like that. The two collided again, their swords striking each other but never gracing the skin of each other. The blades tested one another, trying to see which one would break away and allow their holder to seize a slight chance of victory, but alas, the struggle continued on. Karai was getting tired of this; she will admit that the girl was strong enough to hold her own against her, but she still had much to learn. She was a formidable rival, and that was something Karai took into heavy consideration.

"You are good, but I am more experienced than you, child." Karai gave credit to Lauren before kicking her in the stomach, sending the girl down onto the floor with a thud.

Lauren groaned from the pain, clutching her katana to her chest and resting for a brief moment before rolling and dodging a blunt attack from Karai's katana. She was quick, and swiped her katana at the female Foot soldier, trying to catch her off guard. Lauren's blood pumped faster, her movements became more fluid and quick, her katana flying faster at Karai, who tried her best to keep up with the girl. Lauren swung hard at Karai's sword, which flew out of her hands. She saw a brief chance, and took it without a second thought; Lauren kicked Karai hard, sending the woman down to the ground. Her reflexes were quick as she pinned Karai to the ground while holding her katana close to her neck, daring the woman to try anything to remove her.

"I'm only going to ask this once. Why are you after me and my sisters as well as the turtles?" Lauren asked, her death glare never leaving Karai's face.

She had stared death in the face before, and this was something Karai was used to. What she wasn't expecting was Lauren to outdo her in a sword fight, and she was impressed that her skills were equivalent to her own. She had earned the rightful title as her rival, and that also meant her respect as a formidable warrior to the art of ninja.

But, just as Karai was going to answer her opponent, an explosion occurred beside them, sending rubble and debris everywhere and causing the two women to brace themselves from the impact.

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Erica and Danielle were watching the fight between Shredder and the turtles, along with Rachel getting into the action. Even though Eri was strong enough to hold out on her own, she wasn't going to leave Danielle by herself. Her older sister hadn't received much training unlike the other girls, and Eri wasn't going to let her out of her sight. Her tessen in hand, her eyes bouncing back between Danielle, who froze in place while clutching her bo staff, and Michelangelo, who fought as hard as he could while flailing his nunchuks at Shredder before being hit a few times in the chest and sent to the ground. Her blood pumped hard through her veins, her mind torn between keeping her sister safe and trying to save Mikey from further harm by the Shredder.

"Damn it! We can't just stand here and do nothing! Think of something, Dani!" Eri yelled at her sister, hoping that the brainiac had some plan concocted in her mind.

Danielle was frozen, her limbs numb with the icy touch of fear. She didn't know what to do, and she felt like her hearing was muffled by the amount of fighting going on. She couldn't think, her eyes set on Donatello, who dodged the oncoming needles with fluid grace while deflecting them back at Shredder with his bo staff. In a way, she envied her sisters, who had more experience and training with their weapons than she had, and she felt ashamed. But, seeing Donatello sliced with one of the needles, sent her blood into overdrive. Danielle gripped her bo staff harder, her knuckles going white as she tried to formulate a plan in her mind.

"Let's go!" Danielle said as she and Eri were about to move into the battle when an explosion came at them, sending the two younger siblings across the gymnasium and landing hard on the wooden flooring.

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The smoke cleared away from the wall as everyone stopped and stared at the hole, wondering who was the next contestant to step up against everyone. There was a large group of men standing around, all carrying some form of weapon in their hands. From the looks of their clothing, they looked like they belong to a street gang of some sort. They all looked at the turtles, the girls and the Shredder with smirks etched on all of their faces. The members of this mysterious gang suddenly moved to either side, allowing someone to walk between them. A large, muscled man appeared and stepped forward, his skin a light peach. He had a large scar on his left cheek, almost looking like a set of claws raked his face. A large purple dragon tattoo was snaked down his arm, his black attire that of a bodyguard at a night club. His blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and he gazed at this opponents. The Shredder, who stopped and turned his attention to him as well as . . . four large freakish creatures?

"Well, this is interesting." Hun said with a smirk on his face. He cracked his knuckles and glared at the contestants in his path, his smirk growing larger into a sinister grin. His smirk quickly vanished as he saw more Foot soldiers come marching into the gym, their weapons armed and ready for combat.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me." Rachel groaned as she looked on at the group of men by the hole and the more late arrivals of Foot soldiers.

"Oh, fuck me." Raphael cursed as he gripped his sais harder in his hands.

"YOU! I thought you were dead, my old ally!" Shredder cursed as he pointed a finger at the large man, venom laced in his voice for all those who could hear.

"A pity, my 'master', but I'm taking charge of this city. You've had your fun while it lasted." Hun said as he glared at his old master, his gaze never leaving the Shredder.

"Who in the fuck is this?" Michelangelo cursed, which was very rare for the youngest turtle to say, as he pointed to the crazy large dude with the ponytail. None of the turtles knew who he was, nor did they have any idea just how bad things were about to get.

"Chuck Norris' step brother on steroids?" Erica tried to answer, wondering just who the hell this guy was.

Shit was about to hit the fan, and they knew it was going to get ugly really quick.

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**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hahaha, hello darlings! Didn't expect that twist of events did you? Oh, how I've been meaning to post this up for almost a week. I've been in a car accident, and healing over the weekend, which was a major reason why I've neglected putting the chapter up. But, I felt like the movie had more potential to put some action and violence into it. And I thought, "Why the hell not?"; so tell me what you guys think of this chapter? I'll be working on the next chapter as well. Reviews are welcomed :P I'll see you in the next chapter, my lovelies! **


	20. Enemy Of My Enemy Is Still My Enemy

**Author's Note: Hello, darlings! Welcome back for another chapter of TMNT! Betcha didn't expect that turnout in the previous chapter, huh? I liked the 2k3 series but I also love the 2k14 universe, so I thought, "Why not merge them together?". Seems like a good idea to me, and I hope you guys will enjoy it. I'm trying to keep it along with the movieverse, but I also want to add some of my own creativeness into the mixer. So I hope you'll like this very much just as how I love writing this out. Without further adieu, bring it on! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

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April and Vern had both crashed on the couch in the living room, both completely exhausted from the work loads they were given within the last few days. Vern was too grumpy and tired to be bothered with anything else, and he felt like he could crash on April's couch for a few hours. The two were sleeping on one another, cuddled underneath the blankets and having dreamless dreams. The soft ticking of the clock by the lamp table was the only sound in the living room, besides the soft snoring from the reporting duo. But, the silence was broken when the shriek of Vern's cell phone went off on the coffee table, ringing and blaring throughout the room like an annoying rooster that wouldn't shut up in the morning. Vern groaned and tried to move, but was limited by having April sleeping on top of his torso. He grabbed the phone blindly without opening his eyes, and answered the call.

"Yeah?" Vern grumbled, his voice hoarse from not using it within the last few hours.

"Fenwick! Where are you and O'Neil at?" Bernadette Thompson asked loudly, causing the man to stir half awake on the phone conversation while trying not to stir April awake.

"Erm, sleeping at the moment. Until you woke me up, why?" Vern asked as he sat up on the couch, his mind more awake as the seconds ticked by.

April stirred awake, rubbing eyes with the back of her hand as she tried to rub the sleep out of her eyes. She sat up as she watched Vern pace back and forth while gripping his phone to his ear, his muttering getting louder and louder by the minute. She sat up fully when she heard Vern yelled and was silent for a moment before shutting his phone off and grabbing his shoes.

"Vern? What's the matter?" April grumbled as she sat up while stretching her arms out from the kinks and stiffness.

"We gotta go to the school." Vern answered gruffly, pulling his jacket over his shirt, and running around to find his keys.

"Why? We were there earlier today. What could possibly be up now? And at 12:30 in the morning?" April whined as she got up and grabbed her coat while trying to wonder what Vern was talking about.

"We got a story of the century! A gang fight in the school down in Brooklyn!" Vern answered excitedly, getting April's attention and at full alert. She smiled as she ran to grab her belongings for this huge breakthrough - this was it! Her chance to prove herself worthy to be in Channel Six news.

XXXX

The air within the gymnasium was tense - so tense that even if you cut it with the sharpest knife you had, it wouldn't budge at all. Erica and Danielle were laying on the ground, trying to recover from the explosion that occurred behind them. Danielle grabbed her glasses, which were lucky to not be broken, and placed them on her face, her eyes adjusting briefly before taking in the whole scene. She saw Lauren and Karai at each other; Rachel helping the turtles fight Shredder, and a new mysterious man with a lot of men in way of the gaping hole in the wall. She recognized the man with the large purple dragon tattoo - Hun! Oh, shit pickles! They had to get out of there before real shit hit the fan.

"You were an incompetent fool for returning, Hun! I was sure you were dead all those years ago!" Shredder growled as he had his full attention on the leader of the new gang.

"A shame, my friend. But, you see, you are not worthy of running this city. You've seemed to - how shall I put it? - lost your iron grip. The Purple Dragons have come to claim the iron throne from you." Hun said as he continued his standoff with his old master.

The Shredder would not have this insolence - he would not be made a fool in front of his Foot soldiers nor in front of these freaks. He had one mission in his mind, and he would see it to the bitter end.

"Okay, someone want to tell me what the hell is going on?" Rachel questioned, scratching her head while trying to understand what the hell was going on.

Hun looked at the turtles, his eyes widening slightly as he took their appearances in. Four, large turtle freaks that wielded weapons and fighting alongside Shredder? No, it seemed more was at stake. He looked at the girl next to the red clad turtle, and smirked. He knew these girls - his boss had very high interests in them, and he would see to it that they be delivered to him alive. He looked around, and saw Lauren on top of Karai, her blade never leaving the woman's throat; Danielle and Eri, who were looking terrified at him and started to get up from the bloodied floor.

"Dragons, capture the girls! Alive!" Hun ordered as his street thugs began to enter the gym, their weapons branded in their hands and coming in head strong. Hun glared at the Shredder and began to charge at his old master.

"Foot soldiers, destroy these vermin! And bring me the girls!" Shredder growled loud as he charged at Hun, not wanting to be outdone by his former right hand man.

XXXX

Vern and April drove as fast they could in the work van, tailing the many police cares that were flying from all directions. But they knew where they were going - the school that the girls attended.

"Come on, Vern! Faster! I don't want to miss this chance to report this live!" April yelled as she gripped the 'oh shit' bar above her head, smiling brightly as she was waiting for this breaking story to come through for her.

"Don't worry, O'Neil! I ain't letting this one past our fingers!" Vern smiled brightly, driving and evading the traffic that was heading into downtown Brooklyn.

XXXX

The collision of Foot and Purple Dragons was like two freight trains carrying so much cargo colliding heavily against one another, waves and waves of men battling against one another all for the same purpose. The girls evaded them with ease, dodging and maneuvering from the grasps of the two sides. It was like a dangerous game of tug of war, only they were the rope; being backed into a corner wasn't something they liked, and damning them for getting in this sticky mess.

"Holy shit!" Erica yelled as she began fighting off the Foot and Dragons coming at her; the tessen in her hands gripped tightly as she sliced at every throat she could see coming towards her. Her eyes steeled hard, and she swiped at them, the blades cutting with gentle ease through the rough skin that every stupid male had. These fools were naive, reckless and slacking in their movements; they were pieces of garbage, sacks of meat that were boiled and left to rot in the city streets at night.

Eri felt disgusted; her blood pumping as fast as it would through her veins, her movements so fast that no one could almost see her coming at them. Her hands moved like the wind; fast, quick, almost blinding to the naked eye, and with efficiency. She threw her tessen, but not before grabbing the bottoms of both fans, and withdrew chains that extended about five feet. She twirled them around, the cold steel of her bladed tessen meeting every vulnerable neck and limb without a care in the world. The Foot and Purple Dragons that came within her reach were already dead, their lifeless bodies falling without any grace to the floor in heaps of bloodied corpses. The battlefield littered with their rotting figures, smells of decaying flesh and putrefying stenches of blood sent waves of nausea into Eri's senses, but she ignored them for the time being.

She heaved heavy breaths as she looked at the littered gym floor, her eyes scanning for anymore filth to be rid of. She huffed, and wiped the back of her hand to her face, revealing the thick blood that came away. She was disgusted - but, that was war for you.

"Dude, so not cool. I'm definitely getting a shower after this." Eri mumbled as she flared her tessen again, and ran across the gymnasium to help Mikey with his fight. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her, slicing through every enemy that was in her way; her adorable Michelangelo having difficulty with fighting off the Purple Dragons. He sank to his knees for a moment, trying to catch his breath after wailing his nunchuks around to evade and knock out his enemies. He didn't realize that a Purple Dragon was behind him with a machete in his hands, ready to strike down on the turtle with a large smile on his face.

"MIKEY!" Eri yelled as she threw her tessen at the sneak attacker, and watched as it slit the throat of the attacker, his body falling to the floor in a lifeless heap behind Michelangelo. He turned around to see the dead gang member, and tuned his attention back to Erica, who had blood smeared on her cheek as well as blood all over her clothes. She ran towards him, and grabbed her tessen from the throat of the dead dragon, gripping her weapon tightly while turning to Mikey and hugging him as tight as her arms could.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again, Mikey!" Erica threatened as she pulled back to look him over and make sure that he hadn't sustained any injuries.

"Dudette, I'm fine. Just a few bruises; ain't nothing I can't handle. Let's help our bros now." Michelangelo smiled as he was helped up by Eri and went onto helping everyone else out.

XXXX

Hun and Shredder were at each other, their fists colliding with the other in a measure of wit's and brute strength, neither wanting to back down from the fight. He would give his former master credit where it was due, but he felt it was his time to shine and take the iron throne from him; his Purple Dragons controlled the streets as of late, their numbers increasing within the last few months. But after hearing about these mysterious girls from Eric Sacks, he was very intrigued about them just as much as his boss was.

"You haven't changed one bit, I see, Hun. You've become slower than usual." The Shredder taunted as he threw a punch at the large man, only to be blocked and thrown across the gymnasium while landing in the thick pools of blood beneath his armor.

"I see you have also not changed much, my old friend. Unfortunately, I have a new master; one that is willing to pay me as much as I please in order to get his jobs done. And - he's given me full permission to take these lovely girls away from you, seeing as how you are unable to capture them yourself." Hun taunted back as he cracked his knuckles and smiled at his old master, knowing that if he knew the truth of who hired him, there would be hell to pay.

"Who do you work for? I DEMAND TO KNOW!" Shredder roared, his anger fueling the fire that Hun had brought to the fight.

The large blonde man smirked, and would not give the skilled master any answer. Though, it would be nice to taunt him even further, he would keep the identity a mystery to the roaring demon. He charged at the warrior, slamming his fists hard into the silver armor, denting it further than it was already at.

"Oh, I'm sure you know who it is. It's been underneath your nose all these years." Hun smiled as he continued to exchange blows with his former mentor.

XXXX

Lauren and Karai both leaped into action with one another, their katanas dancing against one another like two magnets that couldn't be pulled apart. Their fight was far from over, and both knew that this was only the fuel that sprinkled over the fire, tempting it to grow and expand, breaking the barriers and hurl at anyone and anything that stood in their way. Lauren dodged an attack from Karai with ease, her body moving so fluid and quick while keeping her attention on her opponent in front of her. She wasn't going to let Karai one up her on this - not this night, she worked hard to keep herself going so far. She wasn't going to let the Foot, the Purple Dragons nor Karai take her sisters or Leonardo away from her. Her Leonardo - the turtle who caught her eye from the first time they knew one another as children. Her unconditional love for him; the honor that she had in him as a warrior, as a ninja who took his role as leader seriously. Lauren knew that they were destined for one another, but send her to hell if you told her that she wouldn't be his and vise versa.

"You're skills are weak, _shōjo. _I've had years of training to be a skilled warrior." Karai taunted Lauren as she tried to slice her hand with the katana, but barely missing. Lauren was losing her grip, her concentration was cracking slowly; damn her for letting his bitch inside her head. She increased her attacks, her blood pumping faster through her. She was able to get a quick slice in; across Karai's face her blade went, the sleek blade scratching the cool flesh and drawing blood. Karai shouted briefly, and staggered back slightly while wiping the blood that was drawn from the wound on her face. She looked at Lauren in complete disbelief, not wanting to believe that she was going to be one upped by a child.

"You talk too much, _inu_." Lauren smirked, her katana gripped firmly in her hands as the blade glistened with the deep color of her opponent's blood.

Karai growled and charged at Lauren, her katana ready for the kill. Lauren saw the move, and quickly countered it with a high jump and a kick to the chest, the female warrior fell on her back, oblivious to the fighting around them. She seethed anger, and got back up while throwing a small shurikan star at Lauren, who wasn't quick enough to see it, and felt it embed itself into her shoulder. She was shocked in herself; she was always able to deflect throwing stars, but she missed this one. Her blood ran down her arm, and she took a brief moment to try and pull it out before being speared into the wooden floor by Karai, who wasn't going to waster a chance at her distraction. Both landed in a heap on the floor, the blood of their enemies pooling beneath them. Lauren groaned as she felt the weight of the woman on top of her as well as the star in her shoulder digging in deeper.

"_Go no kichō tātoru ni narimashi anata o hozon sa remasen_." Karai whispered heatedly to Lauren as she pinned the younger warrior down and drew her katana up above her head to pierce down into Lauren's chest.

Lauren waited for the taste of cold steel to come, but it never came; she opened her eyes to see another katana holding up the one that Karai tried to strike her with. Lauren looked up to see Leonardo, who had blood splattered across his plastron and armor, holding his katana sword against Karai. He shoved her back with the strength in his arm and dueled with her blade for a brief moment. Karai couldn't keep up with the blue clad terrapin, and lost her katana before being brutally kicked in the sternum and sent flying across the room. He turned around and knelt down to help Lauren up, who was panting slightly and grasped her shoulder while trying to get the shurikan star out of her skin.

"Are you alright?" Leonardo asked as he looked over for any other serious injuries. Lauren hissed as she pulled the star out of her shoulder almost violently, and threw it behind Leo's shoulder at an oncoming Purple Dragon, which embedded itself between the eyes of the gang member and watched the body fall into a lifeless heap on the bloodied floor. Leonardo looked impressed, not quite catching the sneak attack; he was getting a little sloppy, which was unacceptable in his mind. Yes, he was concerned about Lauren, but he should've had his guard up as well. He reprimanded himself while helping her to her feet and watched for a brief moment as she brushed it off like it was nothing.

"Been better."

"Lauren -"

"We'll talk later, Leo. Let's help your brothers out." Lauren cut him off; she wrapped her shoulder as best as she could with a few pieces of her shirt, and tied it tight to keep the blood from spilling further down her arm. She looked at him with a small smile, picked up her katana and ran ahead with Leonardo closely behind her.

XXXX

April and Vern arrived at the school, the tires screeching to a halt as they were close behind several police cars. April threw open her door, and flew to the back of the van, prying the door open to grab her equipment with Vern closing in. Both were in a hurry to hopefully get this story live and on camera; this was one of the biggest breaks they've gotten within the last month or so, and they were not going to turn this opportunity down.

"Oh man, this is great! We're finally going to get our story!" April said excitedly as she pulled out her microphone while Vern pulled out his camera equipment, hoping the thing was charged at full battery and ready for shooting footage.

"I don't blame you O'Neil. I'm ready for the action too. Now, let's get moving!" Vern said happily as he brought his camera from the holder and began to fumble with it while helping April get ready for her report.

XXXX

Donatello bashed a Foot soldier's head in as he swung his bo staff at the oncoming sea of enemies. This was getting ridiculous; the amount of calculations and ratios running through his head as far as how each will die was getting almost too much for his brain to compute. He had dodged the weapons from the Purple Dragons he fought, and he disarmed as well as beaten the Foot soldiers he had come flying at him. He was starting to get tired, but the adrenaline rushing through his veins as well as his brain trying to stay calm was the two of many factors that he needed to keep himself striving from getting killed. Donatello turned to see Danielle, who was fighting off the few that were coming to her, and she was handling them just as well as she could. He came running towards her aid, seeing that she struggled with one of the more larger Foot soldiers. Danielle was whacked hard across the face, and fell to the floor while losing her bo staff a few feet from her reaching hands. Donatello ran as fast as his legs could carry him; his bo staff twirling and spinning around while knocking and beating down every opponent in his path. He was determined to make sure Danielle was safe and unharmed; she was his everything: his other half, his soul mate, his oxygen, and he be damned before he let her get hurt. He smacked the remaining Foot soldier down, and knelt down in front of her to make sure she wasn't harmed too much.

"Are you alright, Danielle?" Donnie asked, overlooking her body to make sure she wasn't harmed.

"I'm fine, Donnie." Danielle answered as she looked up at him, her eyes scanning his to prove her point. As he reached down to help Danielle up to her feet, the Shredder came up behind Donatello ready to strike down the turtle.

"DONNIE! BEHIND YOU!" Danielle yelled as Donatello turned around in time to see Shredder, but wasn't as quick in reflexes to evade Shredder's swift kick to the side, sending the bespectacled turtle flying across the floor from Danielle. The Shredder paid no attention to Danielle; his focus was on Donatello, who laid on his side while trying to stand up on his feet and grasping his bo staff in his hands.

"You are my first kill, freak." The Shredder growled as he approached Donatello and stomped his foot into his plastron, his foot crushing and pressing harder into the bony plate of his chest.

Danielle looked on in shock, her body frozen to where she was as she watched Donnie being tortured and being pushed harder into the hardwood flooring. He had sacrificed everything for her - his family, his identity, and his life to keep her safe. He was there for her when she and her sisters were almost taken away by the Shredder at the school earlier; he was there for her when they were tortured and beaten to a bloody pulp; he took care of her, talked to her, and even let her see the most vulnerable side of him. She watched on as he was writhing on the ground, desperate to get Shredder's foot off of him and trying to reach for his bo staff that laid a few feet away from him. Danielle felt her blood pump faster; her breathing became heavier and faster, panting on the verge of tears and anger. She was violently shaking, her body almost moving on her own - the instinct mindset kicking into high gear within her.

Danielle felt rage - unadultered, un-relinquished rage coursing through her veins; she grabbed her bo staff and ran as fast as her legs allowed her, swinging her bo staff slamming into the Shredder's side and swinging him off of Donatello. He landed twenty feet away from the couple, groaning and growling as he got up and stared down at Danielle; the girl's teal eyes were steeled and set on her opponent.

"You dare interfere in my glory, you little bitch!" Shredder growled as he stared down at Danielle, who was more than willing to fight for Donnie.

"Bring it on, asshole." Dani growled as she took her stance and gripped her bo staff, her body taunt with readiness.

The Shredder charged at her, his needles open and flying towards her. Donatello looked on in total awe as he watched Danielle deflect them with her bo, her body moving agile and quick, like a ballerina dancer moving flawlessly on the stage, a bloody stage that she had no care for. She flipped the bo staff, the one end catching the needle and bouncing it back at Shredder, which landed into his armor. She charged at him, and swung her bo hard, catching the underside of his arm, and spinning him around before swinging him into wall. He slid down the wall, and fell to his knees while recovering from the attack. She was a petite girl, and for her to be able to beat him with her bo staff and put him into the wall, he was impressed.

Donatello looked on as he grabbed his bo staff and walked over to Danielle, who turned around to look back at him while panting slightly from her exertion. He gasped lightly, his face in pure shock as he grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her closer, hoping his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. Danielle's eyes were bright green - not her teal but a bright acid green. He wasn't sure what caused the mutation in her eyes, but he watched her eyes return to their teal color, her breathing becoming slower and more calmer.

"Dani - how, I mean -" Donatello stuttered until both he and Danielle turned to see Raphael and Rachel being thrown towards them by Hun. They ran over to the older couple and helped them up to their feet as Hun walked towards them with a predatory look in his eyes.

"I believe you have something for me, you freaks." Hun said as both Raphael and Donatello brought the girls behind their shells, protecting them with their lives if necessary.

"Donnie, you have anything on you?" Danielle asked as she looked up at him, who looked at her quizzically and began to dig around in his utility belt hoping he had something in his bags of tricks.

"There's too many of these guys." Michelangelo said as he and Erica regrouped with the rest of the turtles, Leonardo and Lauren not far behind them. Both the Purple and Dragons and the Foot soldiers kept coming in, an endless sea of black and purple and red filling the gymnasium.

"Hold your ground, guys. We're not letting either side get the girls." Leonardo commanded, his katana swords shining with blood.

Donatello pulled out a brick, and gave it to Danielle, who looked confused and looked back up at him.

"What's this?" Danielle asked, wondering what Donnie gave her.

"A block of C4." Donnie answered, making Raphael look at him like he's crazy.

"Why the fuck do you have C4 with you? Are you fucking crazy?!" Rachel yelled, her eyes darting around the enemies closing in on them.

"I got it." Danielle said as she threw the block up in the air, her bo staff ready in her hands as if a baseball player was ready to hit the ball.

XXXX

Vern had the camera ready to go, the red light on as he counted down silently with his fingers before signaling April that they were live.

"Hi, guys. This is April O'Neil reporting from the Brooklyn High School where several reports of gang violence have been circulating around the area. As you can see behind me, there are several police and S.W.A.T. teams on the scene, preparing to bombard the school to break up the gang war that is - OH MY GOD!" April began reporting until an explosion was set off behind her; the school gymnasium being engulfed in a large ball of flames as police officials and everyone else around them were ducking down to evade the blast. All caught on tape.

XXXX

**Author's Note: CLIFFHANGER! Hahaha! Hello, my dears. I have finally gotten this chapter done :P I know I'm horrible at this, but I have to leave you guys on the edge of your seats to keep coming back. Reviews are welcome - hope you enjoy the chapter :) **


	21. Taking Its Toll

**Author's Note: Hello, everybody! I'm glad you are back for more of TMNT! The last chapter almost broke my fingers from writing so much :P Hope you were on the edge of your seats, because I'm going to try to get more bonding between the turtles and the girls coming up. So with the epicness that transpired in the previous chapter, I hope you guys enjoyed the taste of delicious kicking ass turtle style! :) Onward to the chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs.**

XXXX

_10 minutes earlier . . ._

_The turtles and the girls were surrounded by both the Foot clan and the Purple Dragons in the gymnasium of the school; their bodies were bruised and beaten and staggering from the consistent fighting within the last several hours. The two clans closing in on them was enough to make them claustrophobic, but that was the last thing on all of their minds._

_"What's this?" Danielle asked as she looked up at Donatello with a questioning look while holding the brick in her hand._

_"A block of C4." Donnie answered like it wasn't a big deal._

_"C4? Why are you carrying a block of C4?! Are you fucking crazy!" Rachel yelled, wondering what the hell Donnie was thinking carrying C4 around with him like it was just another trinket within his arsenal._

_"Wait a second. Lauren, do you mind if I borrow your bandage for a moment?" Danielle asked as she looked at her oldest sister, who turned around to ask her something but refrained from it. She untied and pulled off her blue bandage from her wounded shoulder, and gave the soiled bandage to her younger sister. Danielle took the blue bandage and wrapped it around the block of C4 while running her hands around Donnie's shell in hopes of looking for what she needed. Donatello looked behind him, shocked that Danielle would touch his shell; he turned with a jolt and a heavy blush creeping over his cheeks, wondering why she was prodding within his technical equipment. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, but one that he would like to not be feeling at the current moment. His eyes were wide, taking in her flustered face while she was at work._

_"D-D-Danielle, w-what are you d-doing?" Donatello stuttered as he watched her consistently work with whatever her task was at hand._

_"I know they were in here somewhere. Come on, where did you - yes! There it is!" Danielle said as she pulled out roughly a dozen smoke bombs and gave a couple to Donnie while giving a few to everyone else._

_"What are these for?" Raphael asked, wondering what was going through her head._

_"I get it. They're going to provide us a distraction." Rachel answered, knowing what was going on through her sister's mind, even if she only got half about the plan._

_"Exactly." Danielle said as she was working on the block of C4, opening the back and monkeying around with the wires._

_"So, what's with the block of C4?" Lauren asked as she looked at her enemies then at the smoke bomb in her hands._

_"You'll see. Just give me about 20 seconds." Danielle said as she continued to mess around with the wires while their enemies closed in on them._

_The Foot and the Purple Dragons closed in on them, hoping to have their prizes before the other would claim them. Hun was happy; smiling in glee as he was enclosing on the prizes in front of him. His new master would be happy that he would have these girls - the files on them let him know how much they were worth to him as well as how much he would be receiving if he had the job completed. The fact that Shredder was also after these girls was an inconvenience, but it would be quickly overcome by his new empire._

_"This will be my greatest achievement. Now, freaks, give me the girls." Hun said as he cracked his knuckles and was ready to take the fight to the turtles, who were hiding the girls behind their shells, their weapons drawn and ready to strike down their enemies._

_"These freaks are mine, Hun. You will not interfere with my victory. Now, give me the girls, you foul creatures." The Shredder growled as he closed in on them from the other side, his weapons drawn and ready to cut down the turtles that stood in his way._

_"Dani, hurry up. We're running out of room." Eri said as she looked at her sister, wondering what was taking so long for the genius to come up with a plan._

_"All done. Now, get ready for the smoke bombs." Danielle said as she threw the block of C4 up and held her bo staff like a baseball player ready to strike the ball._

_The turtles and girls were ready, the smoke bombs held in their hands waiting for the order. The C4 went high up in the air, making everyone in the gymnasium stop momentarily with an eerie feeling in place. All eyes were on the C4, wondering what it was and if it'll go off. Their pulses were pounding in their ears, their hands sweating and trembling with adrenaline and fear. The C4 came down, a pause of silence enveloped the room which gave the perfect opportunity to give the order for the distraction. Leonardo sensed this, and knew what was about to happen._

_"NOW!" Leo yelled as all eight threw down their smoke bombs, and watched as the clouds of smoke merged into one, creating a mass of smoke to envelope the surrounding enemies._

_All of their enemies coughed heavily and covered their eyes as smoke flew in front of them all. Hun threw his arm across his face, trying to not breathe in the intoxicating smell of smoke as he tried to clear away the thick smog, wondering if his prizes were still there. When the smoke cleared, all eight of them were gone without a trace. He glared at the spot then looked back at the Shredder, who glared back at him with a menacing stare from behind the mask._

_"NO! My girls! YOU! This is all your doing!" Shredder growled as he pointed a finger at his former apprentice, his anger seething through the armor while approaching the large man along with his Foot soldiers._

_"MY prizes! Me? You're the one who is at fault here! None of this would've happened if you hadn't interfered with my plans." Hun growled while stepping up to his former master, not wanting to be outdone by the menace._

_XXXX_

_The plan worked; she couldn't believe that it actually worked. Danielle ran as fast she could along with her sisters and the turtle brothers, weaving through the hallways and down the stairwell of the school._

_"Where are we going?" Michelangelo huffed as he kept up with everyone else while keeping a hold on Eri's hand so they wouldn't get lost in the maze of hallways. Eri struggled to keep up, which made Mikey wrap his arm around her waist, and hoisting her up into his arms, not wanting to lose her to either side of the enemies that they hoped were not following them._

_"The custodian's closet in the west wing. There's a secret escape hatch that we can get into that'll lead down to the manhole where we escaped earlier." Rachel answered, her hand gripped tightly in Raphael's enormous hand. Rachel fumbled in her step, and in a quick flash, she was up in Raphael's arms within the blink of an eye, her arms snaking around his neck and not letting go anytime soon._

_"Dani, how long did you set that block of C4?" Lauren asked as Leonardo picked her up and carried her while running around the corner._

_"About one minute and five seconds." Danielle answered while Donatello picked her up and ran while going to the custodian's closet._

_XXXX_

_Karai got up from the bloodied floor, and shook her head while trying to get the cobwebs out of her mind. She couldn't believe it; she almost had the girl in her grasps, and that monstrous . . . thing, that ninja of a turtle got in her way and thwarted her plan of killing her rival. She was so close, she could almost taste the sweet victory of her kill; she wanted nothing more than to taste that delicate morsel of victory. Karai held her arm close to her chest, looking at the carnage surrounding her like a child's stage of toys being thrown around without a care and bloodied. She surveyed the battlefield, both Purple Dragons and Foot soldiers fallen and laid to waste around the floor, their blood creating miniature oceans that seemed to soak into the wooden floor. She came closer to the center of the gymnasium, she saw her master and the mysterious man ready to go blow for blow; the Foot soldiers and Purple Dragons clashing with their weapons, more blood adding to the greedy pools under their feet. She heard a beeping noise - one that she was too familiar with. She ran towards her master, worry in her eyes while hoping to get him out of the gymnasium before the beeping came to a stop._

_As Hun and Shredder were about to go at one another's throats, they were unaware of the constant beeping that was going off between them. The two clans were at neck and neck, weapons drawn and struggling against each other. The beeping was louder and the constant fighting came to a standstill as the contestants were looking around, wondering where the beeping was coming from. Both Hun and Shredder looked around before looking down between them, seeing the block of C4 with a timer on it. The numbers glowed brightly while counting down to zero, the timer not stopping to give them enough time to get out and away from the blast._

_"MASTER!" Karai yelled as she ran while trying to reach to her beloved master._

_"RUN!" Shredder and Hun yelled at the same time, letting their forces know that it was a trap set by the turtles. A clever card up their sleeves that was well played._

XXXX

Vern had the camera ready to go, the red light on as he counted down silently with his fingers before signaling April that they were live.

"Hi, guys. This is April O'Neil reporting live from the Brooklyn High School where several reports of recent gang violence have been circulating the area within the last few hours. As you can see behind me, there are several police officials and S.W.A.T. units arriving onto the scene, preparing to bombard the school in order to break up the gang war that is - OH MY GOD!" April began her report until a large explosion set off from behind them, causing both her and Vern to cower from the heated blow up as well as several officials.

April and Vern had stopped videotaping and stared in shock at the massive ball of flames that engulfed the gymnasium, not knowing what to make of the situation. They turned off their equipment, and stared at the flaming mass that seemed to eat the remaining parts of the school. They could hear the firetrucks and sirens blaring through the night, but they were too captivated by the ball of fire.

"Oh, my God. Vern -"

"I know, O'Neil. Hopefully those who were in the explosion got out quick. Now, come on, let's see if anyone needs our help." Vern said quietly as the duo made their way over to the authorities to hopefully get some answers as well as see if anyone was seriously hurt.

XXXX

The turtles and girls were out of harm's way, making their escape through the underground sewer tunnels that led from the school to the home of the turtles. The girls were exhausted, battered and bruised, slowly dragging their limbs to accommodate themselves to move ahead, but the tiredness began to creep up on them. They walked on through the sewer tunnels, thankfully not running into anything wet or smelly; the rancid smell of decaying flesh seeping into their senses of smell, the putrefying feel of dried blood crawling under their skins made them want to rip the top layer of skin off and throw it away like the garbage that they fought. The girls were very familiar with the Foot clan, but had no idea who they Purple Dragons really were, and that terrified them even further. Their home was probably crawling with Foot soldiers, hoping that they would return and become targets again; the Purple Dragons were another story. None of them knew who they were, but whoever they were, they meant business with them as well.

"Well, that was an interesting night." Lauren said as she holstered her katana in its sheath, her black hair stiff with sweat and matted with dried blood from the battle. Lauren shook her head slightly as she tried to keep her focus on getting everyone home and in a decent shower - if the turtles ever take showers let alone have a bathroom in their subterranean home. She stumbled a little bit and walked right into Leonardo, who looked at her in a brief shock before setting his large hand on her arm to keep her steady.

"Lauren -"

"I'm fine, Leo. Just missed a step by accident." Lauren said quickly, not wanting to have him worry too much about her. She rubbed her shoulder where the shurikan star was embedded into her not that long ago, feeling the soreness that radiated into her was a pain in her ass. But she wouldn't let that bother her too much, after all, she had three younger sisters that she needed to worry about. She had no time to be worrying about herself after what happened back there, and how she let her own fear get the best of her against Karai. Lauren chastised herself, letting her own weakness get the better of her judgment and depended on her luck for Leonardo to show up at the right time to fend off Karai.

"That was fucking disgusting. Seriously. I feel like someone took a whole barrel of chump and dropped it over me. You know how long this is going to take to get this shit out of my hair? Fucking gross." Rachel said as she shook off anything that was dangling from her, swatting it away like an annoying fly that wouldn't stop buzzing around her. She felt herself tire out more and more as she took a step after another, her body swaying slightly and knocking into Raphael, who smirked down at her and pushed her off of his side playfully.

"Come on, now small fry. Don't get yourself too tired out right now on me." Raphael said as he looked down at his punk ass girl, who glared at him with sleepy eyes before punching him lightly in the arm.

"Don't call me small, asshat." Rachel growled as she leaned to his side again, and laid her head on his cool skin. Her body felt on fire, and she wanted to stay awake as long as possible so she could get a nice decent shower in. She wasn't sure if it was the after waves of adrenaline still coursing through her veins, or if it was something else, but damn, did she feel extremely tired. Raph wrapped his arm around her and kept her close, wanting to make sure she didn't fall to the ground from the intense dose of tiredness she was feeling already.

"Dudes, I so need a shower. I think I have brains all over me." Eri mumbled as she ran her fingers through her hair, getting the strands untangled from the blood and sweat that matted her beautiful strawberry blonde hair. Eri felt so tired that she almost fell to the ground, until Mikey scooped her up into his arms, and carried her while not stopping his pace.

"Hey, dudette. You okay?" Michelangelo asked as he looked down at his surfer girl, whose eyes struggled to keep awake while she laid her head on his massive shoulder as a pillow. She smiled lightly up at him before nodding her head.

"Yeah, just tired, man. But I want a shower so badly." Eri whined as she laid her head back down on his shoulder and closed her eyes just to take a little nap before getting her hot shower in.

Lauren turned around to see Danielle, who rarely talked since they escaped from the school before it exploded. Her younger sister was never quiet, but then again, maybe she didn't have much to say at the immediate moment. Lauren knew how afraid Danielle was, and how little experience she had in her training, but she was still proud of her younger sister for fighting alongside them as well as coming to defend Donatello against the Shredder. Still, she needed to make sure Danielle as alright since she went up against Shredder, and came out alive nonetheless.

"Dani? You alright back there?" Lauren asked as she looked at her bespectacled sister, hoping to receive an answer.

"Hmm, oh! Y-yeah, I'm alright." Danielle answered as she looked up at her oldest sister with a small smile before returning to her quiet state.

Danielle was quiet as she walked beside Donatello, her eyes drooping slightly as she trudged along with her sister. She didn't know what happened back there with the Shredder; it felt like she was on autopilot, her body moving on its own accord as she tangled with him one on one. Her mind was set on protecting Donnie that she hadn't realized how terrifying it was until she was out of there. Her body shook so bad that she almost didn't feel Donatello slide next to her and warp his arm around her trembling shoulders.

"Danielle, are you alright?" Donatello asked as he looked down at her while keeping his arm around her shoulders. She stopped in her tracks and looked up at Donnie, her eyes wide and confused. When Donnie tightened his arm on her shoulders slightly, she almost jumped out of her skin and stopped walking. She wasn't sure why she was feeling hypersensitive or on edge, but she was sure that Donnie was alright, and she felt a bit at peace with that idea floating in her head. She stared up at Donnie, her eyes searching his to make absolutely sure that he wasn't hurt too badly or any serious injuries sustained during the fight.

All four of the girls were acting strange; their movements were slow and dragging as if they were trying to force their bodies to cooperate but refused to do so. Donatello looked into Danielle's eyes, knowing that something wasn't right. She looked paler than usual, her skin lost some of its glow; her eyes were glazed and droopy, her body language slow and sluggish. Her skin felt a little warm, and it sent alarms into his nerves. He grabbed hold of his goggles on his forehead, and brought them down over his glasses, checking her vital signs; he gasped loudly enough that the others stopped in their tracks and looked at the bespectacled turtle in wonder. Seeing the vital signs show up beneath his goggles, Donatello knew something was definitely wrong; she was burning a fever. Her body couldn't handle the intense amount of stress it had endured during the fight, and now it was telling her to crash immediately. Danielle began to sway heavily to the side, her eyes fluttering down as she was ready to meet the cold concrete floor of the sewer.

"DANIELLE!" Donnie yelled as she crashed to the concrete, her body limp and almost lifeless before he was able to catch her.

Lauren watched as Donatello bent down to cradle her in his arms, his goggles telling him that she was indeed sick. Lauren went to her sister's aid, but stopped dead in her tracks as her body began to feel sore and stiff. Her vision swam before her, the bodies of her sister and Donnie coming blurred and distant; her limbs starting to feel numb as she began to breathe heavily. Leonardo knew that she wasn't feeling herself, and turned her around before she fell limp in his arms. He scooped her up quickly in his arms, and held her close to his plastron as her head lay softly on his chest, directly above his heart. He looked at Raphael, who also picked Rachel up in his arms and held her while looking at everyone else.

"What the hell is going on with them?" Raph asked while looking at Rachel before looking up to his older brother.

"It's like, they want to just fall asleep on us, dudes." Mikey answered, wondering why the girls were nodding off on them before they got home.

"I think it's more than that. I think their bodies aren't used to the stress and pressure they felt from the fight, and their bodies are shutting down. They're starting to develop signs of sickness." Donnie said as he cradled Danielle in his arms tightly, his eyes not leaving her face and keeping a constant watch on her in case her vital signs began to worsen.

"We need to get them home. Now." Leo said as all four turtles rushed their girls home, hoping that they would be alright.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Hey guys! Sorry, I know this chapter may seem a little short, but I thought maybe we should have some fluffiness between the couples start to come up about now. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the Shredder or Hun, you'll be seeing more of them eventually soon. But for now, I wanted to get the attention back to our four couples. I know it's taken me a long time to update, but with work keeping me busy, I just needed to try and get as much as possible done with this chapter. Hope you like it, and reviews are always welcome. See you in the next chapter. :) **


	22. Fevered Devotion

**Author's Note: Hello everybody! Welcome back to another awesome chapter of TMNT 2014! I know my cliffhangers are usually right on the edge of your seats, but last chapter's cliffhanger I wanted to give your hearts a little break from the craziness :) So, I will try to give some fluffiness between the turtles and the girls coming up. As well as some other surprises as well. So, without further adieu, here's the next chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

April had just finished interrogating the police official in regards to what had transpired within the gymnasium. She didn't really get a lot of information that she had hoped for, but she was in for a shocker just as much as the firefighters and paramedics. There were bodies; corpses just charred and burned to a crisp within the remains of the school gym, there was no imaginable way to tell who they were or why they were in the school in the first place. All that April knew was that the bodies were completely dead, lifeless and nothing else more than what they were. She was saddened - depressed beyond belief, but she still had a job to do, and she also needed to make sure the girls were alright. She hadn't heard a thing from them since this afternoon when they checked on them after their morning at the school.

"Did you find anything?" April asked Vern, who came up to her with a defeated look on his face and a deep sigh released from his chest.

"No. The authorities have just as little information as we do. They don't know what happened here, and they're doing everything they can in order to figure what happened. They're in just as much disbelief as we are as to what's going on here. I mean, seriously? Blowing up the school gymnasium? That's fucking crazy, and no one knows why is what really gets me." Vern answered, his face in grave sadness at how many bodies there were coming out of the remains of the school. It was a depressing scene - many of them were probably teenagers, if not young adults; he had only hoped that the sisters were still at home and safe. They had experienced enough trauma for one day, and they didn't need another round of stress and pressure added to their spirits.

"Probably some rambunctious kids with nothing better to do." April said as she continued to watch the flames from the school's gymnasium slowly die down from the water that the firefighters were spraying on.

"I have a feelings it's more than a few kids with a few pieces of explosives that are at work on this." Vern said as he took watched the flames simmer down to a dull fire within some of the crumbled pieces of the gymnasium.

"Speaking of the kids, have you heard anything from them? The girls, I mean." April asked, wondering if they were alright. She should've given them a call, just to make sure they were alright and if they needed anything.

"No, I haven't heard from them in a few hours. I'm guessing they just need some time to themselves, and to relax from the stress. We could check on them tomorrow; I'm sure they're just asleep right now." Vern answered, wondering why April was so concerned about them at this hour.

"I just find it weird that they went missing for almost a month, come back to school and ran home for the rest of the day and night, and haven't said one word to us about anything that happened. Don't you think that's a little odd?" April questioned, her gaze piercing into Vern's who began to think about the girls' behavior within the last twenty four hours. It did seem a little strange to him, but he knew it wasn't anything of too importance at the moment.

"Come on, O'Neil. They're just girls, they have - needs, wants. And sometimes, well - things happen for a reason, and they just need some time to themselves to get back into the swing of things. Now, how about you and me go back to your apartment after we finish up here, and get a little nap in before we go to the office to let Thompson know about this? I'm sure she'll want to know what's up in the morning." Vern said as he knew that April was just as worried about the girls as he was.

April thought about it for a moment, her mind wandering to her four friends. She had known them for such a long time that she felt like they were own family; little sisters that she always wanted and never had. It felt strange to her that they were acting so strange, but then again, it had to be from the stress and pressure that they had been feeling the last month or so. Maybe she was over thinking things a little too much, but as a reporter, she felt like there was more going on than they were letting on. She would have to do some investigating on her own when Vern wasn't around. But for now, she was content with knowing that the girls were home safe.

"You're right. Let's go home, besides, maybe we could get some coffee later on. You do owe me a cup or two." April smiled as she walked with Vern back to the van, hoping to get at least a good night's sleep in before the morning shift came about.

XXXX

Eric Sacks sat in his office, watching the report that April had done a few moments ago as he watched the explosion that happened behind her on live television. He was surprised, but he knew that some things had to be tested, and his master was one of those. He knew that his master would be alright, but he had to keep a low wrap on his "side operation", so to speak. He heard a soft knock on his closed door, knowing that whoever was on the other side of it, was meant for business only.

"Enter." Eric said quietly as he turned off the television while turning his attention to the guest that entered his office. Hun came in and quietly closed the door behind him, his face and neck a little worse for wear, but overall, he seemed genuinely fine. He walked in further to stand in front of Eric's desk, his large body still as a statue and waiting for his next set of orders to be conducted.

"Mr. Sacks, I must apologize for my sudden arrival this evening." Hun said as he looked on to his master, knowing that there was some explaining on what happened earlier tonight.

"Mr. Hun, I assume my 'master', is being taken care of? Knowing that he did take a beating from you as well as the explosion, I'm sure he will be - 'indisposed', for quiet some time?" Eric inquired as he looked up at his protege for an answer.

"Yes, though I do suspect that he will find out about your 'other plans', in the coming future."

"If he does, he will have no choice, but to accept things as they are. Now, tell me about the girls." Eric said as he stood up from his desk chair, and walked over to the window in order to see Manhattan in its glory of bright neon colors and boisterous noises that echoed in the night sky of glass and steel structures.

"I have never seen these girls before. They moved as if - they were walking on water. Their movements were definitely of a trained martial art, much like bushido. Though, they do seem to not have as much training as the . . . freaks, I encountered tonight." Hun began to explain, knowing that he would never lie to his new master, who has given him and his rising empire of Purple Dragons everything that they have needed.

"Freaks, you say? Do tell." Eric asked, his curiosity piqued with much interest.

"These freaks were large and reptilian; they looked more like turtles, but they knew of the way of ninja. They held their own against Shredder, but they seem to be . . . attached to these girls. If I may ask, Mr. Sacks, why are you so interested in these four girls?" Hun asked, his curiosity in the girls coming high.

Eric smiled as he walked over to his right hand man, and stood in front of him with a knowing smile on his aged face.

"That, my friend, is where you come in."

XXXX

Leonardo laid Lauren down on the couch after getting the blood out of her hair as well as getting her out of her clothes. He should've known that something was wrong, but he couldn't see past Lauren's facade. He held a wet cloth in his hand, and gently dabbed her forehead, watching her intently as she winced in her sleep and shifted slightly before settling back down on the couch. He didn't take into account as to how much stress and pressure they were under from the fighting they endured from both the Foot clan and the Purple Dragons. He had never heard of these thugs before, so he had Donatello do some investigating in order to know more about their enemies. From what he had found out, he didn't realize that they were more than just a group of street thugs; they had their own empire in the underbelly of the black market, their hands stuffed deep into the pockets of politicians, authorities, and even common citizens. It was sickening to hear, and it made Leonardo's blood pound harder through his veins when he saw how their leader, Hun, was looking at the four girls, let alone _his_ Lauren.

Leonardo watched over her intently, never leaving her side as he continued to dab at her forehead to keep her cool and hoping her fever would simmer back down. He looked over at her injured shoulder, and frowned deeper as he ran his fingers lightly over the injury, the skin would scar from not healing properly. When he gently ran his large fingers over her shoulder, she jerked and hissed softly under her breath; her body moved into a taunt and stiff board, her whimpering seemed to increase as he looked down at her. The way her black hair shined in the light, her skin glowed slightly from the low lighting in the den of their home; her pouty lips were partly opened and her breath ghosting out of her softly. She was such an angel, a godsend sent from the heavens above to show that he as well as his brothers deserved to be happy like the humans above. Maybe, just maybe, there was some small, possible chance that he could be happy with Lauren, even as a leader for his family and her being a leader for her family as well.

Leonardo cupped her cheek in his hand as he tried to keep Lauren calm and cool from her fever. Her body stopped jerking under his touch, and he sighed in relief as he leaned over to the coffee table and dunk the cloth into the cold water before wringing out the excess water while resuming to dab her face with the cool cloth. Lauren mumbled incoherently as she tried to open her eyes, hoping to see Leo without her vision being blurry.

"L-Leo?" Lauren asked softly, her voice small and fragile that he wasn't used to hearing her like this. She was vulnerable and he never seen her like this, except for the time they rescued them the first time. He peered into her royal blue eyes, those blue orbs so distant and glazed from the fever that he smiled and ran his knuckles lightly over her cheekbone.

"Shh. It's okay, Lauren, I'm here." Leonardo answered as he continued to dab her forehead and face from the sweat that collected on her skin due to the fever.

"Where are we?" Lauren asked him as she tried to sit up, but felt his hand kept her down from moving.

"Back in the lair. You passed out from the stress of the fight." Leo answered as he looked down into her eyes, and smiled at the reflection of affection he saw in them. She was safe; she was here with him, and he knew that he would do anything and everything in his power to keep her safe from their enemies. He stroked her hair back from her face, and leaned down closer to her face. Lauren felt her breath hitch in her throat as she watched him lean down towards her with a soft smile on his face.

It was as if her body was under a spell that he alone was casting upon her; her eyes half open as she watched him with a slight blush on her cheeks. Unsure if it was from her body's natural reaction to a member of the opposite sex that was very attractive, or it was from the fever her body was producing unnaturally, her eyes wouldn't leave his as he came closer to her. She took in his appearance even more as he came close to her, his bright blue eyes seemed to glow brighter in the dim lighting of the den, his face so young but also that of a young adult's which made her think he wasn't a teenager in her mind. His green skin seemed a little lighter around his face, his lips were large but a little chapped as he made a small smile to her while brushing her hair out of her face. Her breath hitched higher as he came closer to her face, her sweet breath ghosting along his face. He inhaled deeply, her scent of green tea leaves, jasmine and midnight lilies was ingrained into his memory from so long ago. He was almost a hair's breath away from her lips, his breath deep and even while hers was hitched and ragged, panting with a slight feeling of want in her eyes. They were close - so very close that Lauren felt like they would mold together. But the spell that was placed upon her had broken, and he broke their eye contact by leaning to her forehead, and placing a gentle kiss upon her heated skin.

Leonardo felt his body tighten when he was so close to her, her body seemed to almost glue to his perfectly. But, considering the situation they were in, he knew that her injury would worsen if he didn't treat it immediately. He felt his shell tighten almost painfully when he was this close to Lauren, his beautiful Lauren who loved him for who he was. Due to his constant and vigorous training over the years, he was able to keep calm and collected while being around her, let alone being this close to her body. Her body temperature was higher than normal and he felt so alive being around her, let alone being close to her made his insides burn with a desire that he thought he would never feel in his lifetime. He wanted to chur, purr against her, sink into her welcoming heat below but he refrained himself from doing such barbaric things to her. Her injury was his first priority, and he wanted to make sure she was healed before anything else happened. Leonardo kissed her forehead, the heat he felt from her beneath his lips was enough for him at the time being. He leaned back up to look below and caress her cheek with his calloused hand and she hummed in appreciation of the cool contact he gave to her.

"Rest, Lauren. I'll get you something to treat your injury, now please, rest." Leonardo said quietly as he watched Lauren nod once and smile before falling back into a dreamless sleep.

He watched her for a moment, his eyes taking in her sleeping form. She was so beautiful; her body limp and calm, her breathing slow and deep, sensing that she was indeed in a deep slumber. He pulled the blanket that laid on the back of the couch, and covered her up with the warm blanket before standing up and walking over to Donatello's lab, hopefully he had some answers as to what would happen next.

XXXX

Raphael kept a vigil watch over Rachel, her body laid upon his bed and underneath the red comforter. She was so exhausted from the fight that her body just gave out, and collapsed in his arms. He wouldn't admit it to his brothers, but he was extremely worried about her and wanted to make sure she wasn't seriously injured. Luckily, she was the only one of the four that hadn't sustained severe injuries; Rachel was a tough cookie, and he was amazed on how she fought against the Shredder as well as the Foot and Purple Dragons. He was able to get her out of her clothes and into a large short sleeved t-shirt that was more like an overgrown nightgown on her. Those scum - he hated them more than the Foot, and he didn't know who these guys were; all he knew was that they were after Rachel as well as her sisters. Rachel was special to him, though he wouldn't admit it to anyone; she was like a little firecracker that wouldn't stop lighting up his world. She was a challenge to him; a hurdle that was to be tackled but refused to stay down, she had a spark in her, and it kept him on his toes. But, despite the attitude and rough exterior, there was a gentle heart within her; the way she reacted to him being crushed underneath Shredder's boot and how she fought him on her own and with a speed and agility that he had only see in his brothers, he knew that she was worth fighting for and keeping. He would be damned before he let either the Foot, the Purple Dragons, Shredder or Hun take her away from him, and he knew that he was in too deep to get out.

Rachel grumbled in her sleep as she began to stir, her body stretched out slightly from underneath the covers. Her hair was mushed and frazzled from being on the pillow, and he had to smirk at her; she tried to sit up, but fell back against the bedding beneath her, and groaned as she felt the slight waves of pain shoot through her limbs. She opened her eyes and looked at Raph, sleep still clinging to her gaze.

"R-Raph?" Rachel asked sleepily, her eyes glazed and half awake.

"Hey, squirt. How ya feeling?" Raphael asked as he came close to the bed and sat on the edge while looking down at Rachel, whose skin was shining a little bit with sweat. Her fever was also kicked into high gear; her face carried a deep blush across her cheeks, and she swallowed a little bit at the closeness of his body.

"Like I got run over by a mac truck three times in a row, but overall, good as a girl could get, considering I was saved by a giant mutant turtle with a bad attitude that rivals mine." Rachel answered, her voice groaning out and tightening when she tried to talk. She hated being sick; it was the worst feeling she could ever feel in her life.

"Hmph, and here I thought I was wimp when it came to being sick." Raph smirked as he brushed a strand of hair from her eyes, and admired her quietly as she looked up at him. She took into his features on his face; his skin was a deep green, almost an emerald green with old and new scars decorating his scales like badges of honor from years of training and fighting against the Foot. He was the biggest of the four brothers, and he was also the one that seemed to lose his temper the quickest. His scowl seemed to disappear from his face, and she liked it; she liked it when he wasn't angry or brooding, and she wished he could keep that scowl off his face. His red bandana was the longest and covered his whole head, and she tried to peer into his eyes, those liquid amber gold eyes boring into hers with some kind of emotion that was akin to devotion; loyalty and deep concern. Raphael brushed her chestnut brown hair out of her eyes, light green glazed over from the sickness and the stress of fighting as well as sleep.

Rachel leaned her head towards his large hand, seeking out his comfort, his cool touch; just his touch alone made her feel calm and . . . happy. She felt happy when he was around, even though she liked to have a banter war between the two of them; Rachel felt almost loved when she was around Raph, and she wouldn't have it any other way. His hand cupped the side of her face, and stroked her cheek with his thumb and actually smiled at her. She blushed harder at the genuine smile that was displayed on his face, and she felt her breath catch in her throat. He leaned down close to her until they were almost nose to nose; his breath and her breath ghosting against one another's faces, mingling together to create a sweet and addicting concoction between the two. Those amber gold eyes bore into her light green orbs, testing her gaze to see if she would break the quietness around them. He would never do something like this, but his mind went towards his instinctual side, and he gently nuzzled her cheek, a slight churr produced deep in his throat as he lightly kissed her cheek. Rachel let out a deep sigh and he forced himself to look at her, wondering if she was now disgusted with him. But what he saw shocked him to the core - she actually smiled at him, and ran her fingers lightly over his face and tracing her fingertips gently over the scar on the right side of his lips.

Rachel smiled at the genuine display of affection that was to her and her alone. She wanted nothing more than to stay here and be in his arms, but she wouldn't push the subject any further than he was willing to go. She would wait for she was also testing the waters between them as well.

"Raphael . . . would you stay here and - run your fingers through my hair again?" Rachel asked as she looked up at him, her eyes struggling to stay awake. He smiled down at her, and shifted while getting up from the edge of the bed and sit in his seat while pulling as close to the bedside as possible.

"Sure." Raphael answered quietly as he gently ran his thick fingers through the now silky strands of her hair, lulling the girl back to sleep. He wouldn't trade anything in the world to leave her side, he was content for the time being.

XXXX

Michelangelo sat down next to Erica as she laid on the makeshift table in the meditation room, the chandelier hanging above them and casting its colorful light throughout the room in a rainbow effect. He watched her as she slept, his surfer dudette sound asleep with a small smile on her face. He was amazed at her - how she fought against the Foot and the Purple Dragons; the way she danced around the bloody floor of the gymnasium with grace and quickness that rivaled his own and his brothers. She came to his aid when he didn't realize that he would've been hacked in half by a scumbag; her eyes glowed brightly for him when she was terrified that she would've lost him. His dudette - his beautiful Eri; her strawberry blonde hair was all clean from the blood that soaked into her wild strands; her skin glowed under the colorful lighting like an ethereal being, a hot babe coming onto the beach from the ocean with eyes only for him. He so cared for her, he would do anything just to keep that smile on her face. He would make her laugh, smile, giggle and sigh happily as long as it was he who did those things for her. Mikey never thought he could ever feel love for another being, besides his brothers, but his wish came true when she came into his life. When she shifted in her sleep, he came closer to her side, hoping she would open those beautiful eyes of hers and see the smile in them.

Eri shifted in her comfortable bed rest, sighing happily as she opened her light honey brown eyes to see beautiful colors dancing around her; the chandelier casting rays of blues and pinks, yellows and bright oranges in her line of view, only to be obscured by Michelangelo, who beamed down at her as their gazes connected. His baby blue orbs were bright and full of happiness when she saw him, his bright orange mask a sight for sore eyes.

"Duuuuuuude." Eri said sleepily as she moved slightly to look up at Mikey from a better angel.

"Hey, dudette. You okay? You made me, like, worried about you." Michelangelo asked her as he came closer to her and sat on the edge of the table, peering down into her honey eyes.

"Mhmm, just a little sleepy. We kinda get tired out when we go overboard with training and stuff." Erica said as she rubbed her eye with the back of her hand, trying to get the sleep out so she can try to talk to him more.

"Sorry, dudette. You were totally awesome back there. You kicked some serious shell back there." Mikey complimented her as he leaned down to brush the stray strands of strawberry hair from her eyes, wanting to see her better.

"Thanks, dude. I hate being sick. If we go overboard, we get really sick. It's so not cool. I hate being sick, and that means I can't play video games or read my comics." Eri pouted as she tried to put on her best sad face for Mikey, who laughed and brushed his knuckles lightly over her forehead, feeling the fever she had a little while ago starting to cool down.

Michelangelo leaned down towards her, his bright baby blue eyes never leaving her honey brown orbs. She was like a magnet to him, a very strong magnet that wouldn't let go of his attention. She was like a really good comic book that you couldn't put down, a video game that was desperate to be played, a skateboard that was begging to be ridden. But she was no inanimate object, she was a real, living, breathing being that cared just as much for him as he did for her. Her devotion to him was unmatched - he had video games, skateboards, surfboards, comics, all the good stuff that he wanted, but nothing was as important as her. His Erica - his little dudette who went to town on taking out all of their enemies just to make sure he was safe and unharmed. It was like the ocean had cast a spell over the two, their attention spans only drawn to one another. The colorful lights from the chandelier danced around them, creating little orbs of colorful light that danced and played around them, highlighting the best appearances towards the two surfers. Erica looked into Mikey's face, his light green skin with freckles plastered across his cheeks made her smile even more; he was such a goof ball, but so was she, and they were made for each other. The beaded necklaces hung from his neck, enticing her to draw him closer to her.

Her breath hitched quietly as she reached up to grab a part of his beaded necklace, and gently tug him towards her, wanting to feel the coolness of his skin. She felt her fever drop a little, but she was still feeling warm; her body so close to his made her want to dunk into a bathtub of cold water. He caressed her cheek carefully, not wanting to disrupt the silent reflections of their love towards one another. He leaned down, and lightly kissed her cheek, a soft and light chur rumbling in his throat, which caused Eri to giggle lightly as she tilted her head to feel his lips. Those chapped lips, his bright blue eyes, his charming sense of humor - dear churros, she was falling in love with him. She had no complaints about it, and Eri felt a little daring. She leaned up slightly, and kissed his rough scaly cheek, feeling the small bumpy scales come to life beneath her soft lips. She leaned back down against the pillow and smiled up at him - his reaction priceless. He felt like someone had poured ice into his veins, and made him stop thinking completely. He smiled bright and leaned down so they could nuzzle each other, their noses brushing up against one another and humming softly at the affection displaying towards one another.

"Mikey . . . sleep next to me, please? I don't want to be alone right now." Erica asked sleepily as she looked up with a glaze over her eyes.

"Sure, dudette." Michelangelo answered as he helped Eri move onto her side, minding her small injuries and not wanting to add to the stress her body was already feeling. She rolled onto her side, and lifted the blanket up so Mikey could slip in and wrap his arms around her, letting her head lie underneath his chin and cradle on the bony plates of his plastron. She sighed happily and closed her eyes, smiling as Mikey pulled her closer to his body, her heat and his coolness colliding into a comfortable temperature between them.

XXXX

Donatello worked on his computer as he kept a vigil watch over Danielle, who laid upon his cot in the lab; He was desperate in his research, wanting to know why she was getting sick. Her body was under so much stress that he was surprised her blood pressure wasn't going through the roof; her skin began to collect beads of sweat at an alarming rate, her hands and arms cut up from her fight with the Shredder. He was dumbfounded - there were no words to describe how she moved and fought against their enemies. She was so beautiful and dangerous, he couldn't take his eyes off of her. Her brown hair clung to her forehead, and she shivered underneath the blanket that was draped over her. He walked over to the cot, a small beaker in his hand; he hoped he could deduce this sickness that overcame her, and also the fever to diminish away. He sat down on the edge of the cot, his weight dipped and looked over Danielle. Her skin pale and clammy with beads of sweat; her body shaking almost violently from the effects of her fever, her lashes fluttering as to see her surroundings. She whimpered in pain slightly as Donatello cradled the back of her head with his hand, and gently pulled her up so he could administer the concoction to her.

"Shh, Danielle. It's okay, I'm here. Shhh, relax." Donnie soothed her as he watched her drink the liquid slowly, the cool drink going down her throat smoothly. She calmed down instantly, and hummed at the feel of cold against her hot skin; Danielle fluttered her teal eyes open, her glazed eyes searching to find Donatello, who smiled down at her and laid her back down on the cotton pillow.

"D-D-Donnie?" Danielle asked, her voice whimpering softly at the little pains shooting through her body.

"It's okay, Dani. I'm here, you're safe." Donnie answered, his large hand brushing the sweat covered strands of hair away from her clammy face, the coolness of his scaly skin coming into contact with her fevered skin caused her to moan aloud. He almost jumped out of his shell, the sweet sound that left her lips sent shivers down to his groin and he had to do everything in his willpower to not lean down and have his way with her. He was conflicted - one side of him told him that he needed to find a cure for her fever, the logical and humanoid side almost screaming to him that he needed to think about her welfare and her health ahead of his greedy desires. The instinctual side of him was also raging a war on his brain, demanding that he cater to her needs, a sexual thirst for her body and soul was calling to him. He shook his head roughly as he looked down at his beautiful Danielle, who looked up at him and panted slightly from her fever.

"Donnie?" Danielle pleaded, her arms shaking slightly as she tried to reach out for him; she wanted to feel that coolness his reptilian body was permeating. Donatello didn't need to think twice as he slowly wrapped his arms around her back, and lifted her up into his lap while letting her head fall onto his shoulder limply.

Danielle clung to him weakly, her body's violent shivering calming down to a small shiver here and there; her skin's warmth was almost burning hot that he felt like it would burned his scaly skin right off. She gasped loudly, enjoying the feel of his cooled skin; the rough scales raising up to meet her silky touch, almost demanding her to touch them and run her fingertips over the small pebbled bumps. Donatello groaned to himself as he secretly enjoyed the feel of her fingers running over his skin; he would do anything to protect her, even if it meant the cost of his life. Danielle was too precious to him, her fragile body glued to him seeking out comfort and reassurance. He wrapped his arm around her body tightly while the other reached up to brush the bangs out of her teal eyes, her cheeks blushed red and blotted from the unnatural fever. She stared at him with a glazed passion; her eyes seeking out his like a moth to a flame, tempting him closer to her warmth. He was drawing closer to her, his breath heavy and deep as he was so close to her face; Danielle's breath was hitched and soft, the sweet smell of french vanilla clinging to her and making his mind swim with desire. He wanted her - no, needed her, and his body was demanding him to answer that craving. But he had morals, he would never degrade himself like that, let alone degrade her against her will. Her mind fogged with the fever, and before either one knew it, they were almost touching lips.

Donatello felt something inside him snap, and he pulled away knowing that he would never do anything against he will, no matter how selfish he was and how much he wanted to have her. He leaned to her forehead, and kissed her heated head, marveling the warmth her body radiated to him and him alone. Oh, dear sweet overload of computers and databases, there were no words that could describe how he was feeling right now. He felt as if his chest would burst from the devotion and trust she was giving to him. Unfortunately, the sweet moment was interrupted when she began to pant heavily, her body shaking violently again as he lowered her down to the cot, and covering her with the blanket. Danielle whimpered at the loss of his cool skin, shaking underneath the covers in hopes she would feel him again.

"D-Donnie -"

"Shhh, rest Danielle. I'll be right here." Donatello hushed her as he ran his hand over her hair, coaxing her back into a deep sleep. He waited a moment to make sure she was in a deep sleep before returning to his computer, typing furiously away at the sensitive keys in order to find a cure for this ridiculous fever. He would do anything to protect her.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Hello, lovelies. I wanted to do some fluffiness between the turtles and the girls to develop some feelings between them, and I have to say that this is the longest chapter I've actually written for a story -fingers fall off my hands- Oh damn, where's the glue? Lol. Hope you guys enjoy the chapter because I will get more action within the next two chapters hopefully soon. :) Reviews are welcomed. Happy reading. **


	23. Caught With A Camera!

**Author's Note: Hello, ladies and gentlemen! And welcome back to another awesome chapter of TMNT! I figured I get my fluffiness out of the way in the previous chapter, and hopefully get some more exciting chapters into here about now. I haven't forgotten about Shredder, Hun or Eric Sacks, but I do hope you'll forgive me for dragging this out :P I will try to get more of the 2014 movie in here very soon. ****  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

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April and Vern came into the office first thing in the morning, their eyes weary from the little amount of sleep they had gotten from last night's excitement. Perhaps they shouldn't have had those couple cups of coffee so damn late at night. Vern had pressed a hand to his forehead, feeling a massive migraine coming very quickly. All the interviews they had done the previous night as well as the adrenaline rush they had experienced was a loud drum pounding into his brain, the tempo not stopping its pace. April felt the same way, but they had a job to do, and they would see to it that it was finished today. As soon as they walked into the main floor where all the offices were, Bernadette Thompson approached them with a scowl almost engraved into her face and a cup of hot pipping coffee in her hand.

"You two, follow me." Thompson grumbled as the duo looked at one another and without a word followed their boss to her office.

April had probably some clue as to what it was about this time, but she never spoke up, especially when Thompson was in a bad mood first thing in the morning. They walked into her office, and right before the door was shut quietly, Thompson started in them, making the annoying migraine that Vern was already having worse.

"Alright, you two. What kind of sick fucking game are you playing at?" Thompson growled as she glared daggers at the reporting duo, making them look at her in shock then at each other in confusion. Neither one of them knew what the hell she was on about.

"I'm sorry - wh-what are you talking about?" Vern asked, wondering what crawled up Thompson's ass this time.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about, Fenwick! I asked you guys for one thing, and you blew it!" Thompson growled as she glared daggers at Vern then looked at April, who tried to reason with her.

"Game? What game?" April asked, her curiosity piqued as to what was really going on.

"I told you to keep an eye on those girls for one day, and you lost them again!" Thompson answered agitated, her voice creeping up more in volume while she tried to have a swig of her coffee.

"Thompson, we _did_ check on the girls last night. They were home and safe. Why?" April asked, not understanding what the hell was going on now.

"What time?" Thompson asked, her hands digging through mountains of sacked papers on her desk searching for something she meant to show them.

"Uh - pfft! I don't know -" Vern tried to guess the estimate time he and April saw the girls last night.

"What time?!" Thompson roared while papers were flying through the air in a disarray of chaos.

"About 9:30 last night. Look - what is this about? Really? The girls are fine, nothing -" Vern tried to answer when Bernadette shoved a morning newspaper into his face, and he pulled it back to read the front page of the paper. When the words sank into his pounding mind, his jaw dropped and his hands began to shake.

"Vern . . ." April tried to grab his attention when she, too, read the front page of the article.

"Their home was broken into last night. We don't know what happened, but all we know is that they're missing." Thompson said solemnly, her voice grave and depressing as the two read on with the article, not believing what they were reading.

XXXX

Donatello was on his computer researching various places in search of a cure for the high fevers all the girls were experiencing within the last few days. His brain working into overdrive mode, wanting and demanding answers as to why they were experiencing this sickness that had caught up to them. He checked each of the sisters, all but Danielle were starting to show signs of improvement. Eri was the one who felt the best out of them all, bouncing around with Mikey but staying in the meditation room in case she were exposed to the sickness the others were having; Mikey, knowing she couldn't go out to the den, brought one of the many flat screen televisions into the meditation room for the two of them to watch movies and play video games together. Lauren had suffered a tear in her shoulder from the shurikan star that was embedded in her before she roughly ripped it out, tearing the sensitive muscle tissue and leaving a few scars. Her fever was still running but not as high as it had originally began; Leonardo kept a vigil watch over her, treating her injured shoulder as best as he could. He refused to leave the den, even when Master Splinter called for them to train in the dojo. Rachel was sound asleep, her fever diminished to a little warmth; Rachel was up and moving slightly, but not out of the clear yet, so she too, was also to remain in his bed until she was fully better; Raphael wouldn't budge a muscle, keeping himself close to her whenever she needed something, which wasn't often. He let his thick fingers run through her silky strands softly, not wanting to disturb her but not wanting her to feel alone.

Danielle . . . his beautiful, sweet, precious Danielle was the worst of the four sisters. Her fever was still climbing, but stayed at a plateau of a hundred and four point three degrees Fahrenheit; her breathing was labored, skin protruding high amounts of sweat that he was forced to take off her shirt, a task that made him so red in the face he felt like he would pass out from her natural beauty. She laid under the covers of his cot clad in only a bra and underwear, her fever still clinging to her like a magnet that refused to let up. Danielle whimpered, and it only made him more determined to find a cure for her sickness as well the other sisters' sickness. Deciding to take a break from his research, he let the computer databases run their course while he turned around in his wheeled chair, and stood up to be by Danielle's side. Donatello felt his heart flutter, almost losing its steady rhythm in his chest as he stared down at his beautiful angel. She shivered from a cold sweat, her body indecisive if it wanted to be hot or cold; her skin clammy and glistening with sweat, her breaths labored and heavy. His beautiful mate was in need of comfort.

Wait, what had popped into his mind? _Mate_? He would claim a human girl to be his and his alone? Preposterous! He was a scientist, inventor, technological genius who thought out the numbers and equations to every possible riddle and problem there was in this world. He could set up any security system within a short span of time; his brain working and crunching numbers in his sleep regarding ratios and fractions of computer coding, and yet here he was, his primitive instincts kicking in and telling him that she was a perfect mate for him. He wanted no other, needed no other than his sweet Danielle; his beautiful, merciful godsend that gave him a fighting chance at love, which the numbers were slim to none in his book until he found her. Donatello sat on the edge of the cot, worry etched on his face as he trailed her features with his eyes. His large hand came to her face, brushing away the plastered strands of her brown hair and feeling her cheek carefully; she was still burning hot, her fever wouldn't cool down. He watched as she opened her teal eyes - those beautiful eyes that captivated him and entranced him in some kind of spell.

"D-Donnie?" Danielle moaned, her eyes bleary and searching for him almost blindly.

"Shhh, I'm right here." Donatello answered quietly, leaning over to a desk next to the bed side and wringing out excess water from a cloth that was soaking in ice cold water.

"I-I f-f-feel so c-c-cold." Danielle muttered, shivering under the blanket when he knew she was burning. He placed the cold cloth on her forehead, and she moaned while closing her eyes in pure ecstasy, the sweet feeling of something cold against her fevered skin was a welcomed blessing to her.

"It's the fever, your body is indecisive whether you're hot or cold. But don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." Donnie said as he grabbed a second cold cloth and began to gently dab away the beads of sweat upon her skin, a small smile etched on Danielle's face at the coolness she was receiving from him.

"W-w-will, um - will you . . . s-sleep with m-m-me . . . " Danielle stuttered, her face bringing back a bright red blush to her freckled cheeks as she gazed her unfocused sight to him.

"W-what?" Donatello asked, his mind not really picking up what she asked him to do.

"Uhm - well, I'm . . . W-Will, um, will you . . . s-s-sleep with m-me? P-Please, I-I-I don't want to b-be alone." Danielle shivered out the words, her teeth chattering uncontrollably as she tried to keep herself warm under the covers. Her arms provided little warmth, and she looked at Donnie with weak, bleary eyes that were pleaded to him.

Donnie stopped his ministrations and stared at her, his whole body stiff and rigid in disbelief. Had he heard right? Was he hearing things, a trick that his mind was playing on his neurological mind? Danielle - the beauty he cherished so dearly, was asking him to sleep next to her, in a cot, in his lab, with little clothing between them? Oh, dear computer encryption and decoders, he was going to have a heart attack, but when he gazed into her pleading eyes, he didn't have the voice to say no. He looked back at his computers, which were working around the clock to find anything or any place that was abandoned where they could grab some supplies and possibly some medicine for the girls. Donatello gulped quietly as he grabbed both cloths from Danielle and placed them back into the cold bowl; he had stripped himself of his technical equipment and placed them over on his desk earlier that afternoon. His heart began to pound loudly against his rib cage, the strong muscle pumping blood faster throughout his body and in certain places that made him extremely uncomfortable. But for her sake, he would have to keep her warm, and pray that his cool body would cool her fever down significantly. Only sporting his shorts and a few wrappings on his limbs, he gently pulled the blanket away to reveal Danielle's shivering body - a slim and petite frame that she displayed in a very revealing bra and panty set. He gulped loud as he tried to not disturb her by taking off her only source of protection for a brief moment; he quickly studied her petite form - slim waist and limbs, her breasts round and average size. He would give anything to see her body in more than just a medical exam, but his eyes were glued to her face. There was no way he would embarrass himself or Danielle for his curiosity's sake. He climbed in slowly, and wrapped the blanket around the two of them while laying one arm across the pillow to support her head. His other arm went around her petite frame and gently pulled her against him, reveling in the warmth that she was producing unnaturally.

Danielle hummed quietly as she felt him pull her unyielding body towards him, her frame cradled carefully to his plastron. She tucked her head into his upper arm, laying on his bicep as a pillow and pressed herself closer to his chest, feeling the coolness he gave off to her. Her mind was swimming; her thoughts clouded by the fever, and her shivering began to subside for the time being. She felt content - peaceful, uninterrupted quietness between them; there was no need for words as he bent his arm that she had trapped underneath her to play with her hair gently. His hold on her gave off the sense of protection, stability and a little awkwardness; he had never been able to hold someone in his arms like this, this gesture of trust and companionship that was displayed before his eyes was almost an impossible dream that had finally come true, despite the circumstances that were laid between them. He wanted nothing more than to stay here and hold Danielle like this. Donatello smiled as he watched the small smile display on her face, and her eyes closed carefully, the lashes of her eyes fluttering like wings of a butterfly landing on a delicate flower. She hummed in her throat, the sound soothing and welcoming to his sense of hearing. He leaned slightly towards her and kissed her forehead, and took off his glasses while reaching behind him to set them on the desk.

"Mmm, Donnie . . ." Danielle moaned as she became more comfortable in his embrace. She snuggled closer to him, the coolness of his reptilian body permeating through her fevered skin.

"I'll be right here, Danielle. Get some rest." Donnie whispered as he felt his eyes grow heavy with the lack of sleep. A smile etched on his face, and he closed his weary eyes for a small nap. A nap that he wouldn't trade in the world right now.

XXXX

April and Vern were still in Thompson's office, trying to go over the evidence that there was something messed up going on in the city. It was strange - how did four girls, who were finally brought back from being missing over a month ago, now were missing again? It made no sense, and with the increasing gang activity that had been brought to the city streets as of late, the puzzles were now becoming more like scattered pieces to different puzzles that were incomplete.

"I don't understand how they could've gone missing. Someone is seriously out to get them." Vern said as he finished reading the article, giving the paper back to Thompson and sinking into his seat before the desk. There was no sense that was made in this mystery, and he be damned if these girls were the victims to any gang war going on at the dead of night.

"Did you guys happen to see anything suspicious when you last visited them? Was there anyone outside that didn't seem to fit in with the surroundings?" Thompson asked as she looked between the duo, hoping that they had some form of clues.

"No, we didn't see anyone." April said defeatedly, her eyes lowering to the ground in shame. How could see and Vern have been so stupid? They should've stayed the night at the girls' home to make sure nothing had happened to them.

"Okay, I'm going to give you guys some time off. It'll be paid vacation for you two; All I ask is you try to find as much information as you can about the disappearance of these girls. We need to know who wants them, and why." Thompson said as she informed the duo of what was to come.

XXXX

_A few hours later . . ._

Donatello heard a constant beeping, a very annoying beeping that wouldn't stop. At first, he thought it was his alarm clock on the side of his cot, but his mind came to the conclusion that it wasn't that. He began to wake up and rub his eyes between his thumb and finger, his mind clogged between the reality and fantasy world he just exited from. He reached behind his shell for his glasses, and placed them on while blinking away any remainder of sleep that clung to the edges of his eyes. He looked down and smiled as he saw Danielle, who was cured up into his chest, sound asleep and a small smile on her angelic face. She was relaxed; her body calm and still instead of her convulses and shivering that she had endured for the past several hours. He slowly disentangled himself from her embrace, and he stopped himself for a brief moment, wanting to check to make sure her fever wasn't still high. He grabbed his goggles from the computer desk, and slipped them over his glasses while reading her vital signs: she was still not out of the clear, but she was better than earlier. Her temperature dropped to a hundred and one point three degrees, a sign that was in his good favor. She was calm but for the time being, and he didn't know how long it would last before her fever would spike up again. Donatello smiled as he pulled his goggles from his eyes, and turned around to look at his computer screen, wondering what the constant beeping was from.

Donnie looked at the computer screen he been working on earlier, and almost gasped aloud when he read what the databases discovered: a vacant hospital facility that was packed with medical supplies and medicine that would be needed for the girls and for them in the future. They were very low on the supplies, and it would only be a matter of time before they had to leave and grab more to stock up. Donatello read the address and quickly wrote it down before turning to the desk and began putting on his technical equipment on him. He grabbed his bo staff and stopped to look at Danielle for a moment, taking in her frame that was laying in his cot. Her smile, her calm demeanor, her deep breathing letting him know she was finally in a deep slumber. He ran his hand through her hair, and smiled as he watched her bury herself more into his bed, keeping the covers wrapped around her petite body.

"I'll be right back, Danielle. I promise." Donatello whispered to her ear before laying a light kiss on the crown of her head before leaving the lab to wake his brothers up and let them know what their next objective was.

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Leonardo was in a state of comatose, keeping his vigil watch over Lauren, who was fast asleep on the couch and wrapped in his blue comforter. He wouldn't move from his spot, his concern for Lauren's health was more important than anything else at the moment. He brushed the silky black strands out of her face, keeping note of her smooth breathing and her calmness she radiated from her sleep. He smiled as he brushed the strands from her forehead, her fever was somewhat gone, but still lingering as if it were a cloud that wouldn't leave the sky. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Donatello enter the den, his technical equipment on and ready to go. He came over to his oldest brother with a face of confidence and determination; Leo took note of this and knew that something had caught Donnie's attention.

"Donnie, what's up?" Leonardo asked, noting his younger brother's look on his face.

"Leo, I've found an abandoned facility with medical supplies." Donatello answered, looking down at Lauren before look back up to his oldest brother.

"Where?" Leo asked as he stood up from the couch.

"About one point three five miles from here. At the old Bellevue Hospital Center, I've checked everything and it's got everything we need." Don answered showing a holographic image from the technical trinket on his left wrist.

Leonardo knew what had to happen, and he had to inform his brothers as well as his sensei and Shimizu sensei that they needed to move and fast. He nodded and looked back at Lauren, her small frame wrapped securely in his comforter. He looked over her, quickly debating as to whether they moved right now or wait for a few moments. He was the leader, and he needed to get those medical supplies for the girls as well as for their family.

"Aright, go get Raph and Mikey and let them know what's the siutation. We move out as soon as possible." Leo ordered as he watched Donnie nod and go to get their other two brothers.

He would've brought his attention back to Lauren when he heard a small noise behind and quickly drew his katana at the intruder before halting his movements. He looked on to see an older woman about her mid fifties, her graying hair flowing freely behind her shoulders. Her aged caramel skin sparkled in the dimly lit den, her brown eyes looked at him with deep concern; her black kimono shirt hung loosely around her torso, and her white pants hung loose around her hips. She bowed to him and looked down at Lauren, a small smile on her aged face.

"Madame Blossom, to what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you here?" Leonardo questioned, sheathing his katana back into its holder.

"I was out of town for quite sometime, unaware of the situations that have happened within the last month. I must apologize for my nieces -" Madame Blossom began to say when Leonardo cut her off.

"No, no! Please, the girls were not at fault at all. It was the Foot clan and now the Purple Dragons that are the cause for the messes in the city. The Foot were the ones who kidnapped the girls and attacked them in the subway, and now them as well as the Purple Dragons are after the girls. And we don't know why." Leonardo explained, wanting to make sure that Madame Blossom wasn't going to punish the girls for something they had nothing to do. Madame Blossom gave a small smile to the terrapin and walked over to her oldest niece, running a gentle hand through her black strands before returning her attention back to Leonardo.

"Do you care for her?" Madame Blossom asked him, the question catching Leo off guard and look at the aged woman.

He thought for a long moment, and looked down at the beauty he treasured so very much. He would do anything just to keep her safe, and he would not have it any other way. The way she fought alongside him and his brothers against Shredder and the Foot as well as the Purple Dragons made him feel proud of her and her sisters. Leonardo smiled and kept his gaze at Lauren, his blood pumping more throughout his body in a heated way - a trait that he felt was unnecessary but a wanting that he desperately wanted to feel. A deep feeling that he buried for so long - just by looking at Lauren, he desperately wanted to hold her in his arms, caress her silky skin, kiss her in a fevered manor and passionately, sink into her welcoming heat and dance the lover's dance with her under the bed sheets of his bed. But alas - he knew for the time being, it would be a fantasy to him.

"I do - I . . . love her, but -"

"But you are torn between your love for her as an equal, regardless that she is human, and your duty as leader to your clan. Leonardo, you are a worthy warrior to the art of ninja; you have taken everything in stride, and done what must be done as a leader. You have risked your family's existence to save her and her sisters; you risked your life to protect her from the Shredder, even though she was already a skilled warrior as well. You have done what you felt was right to protect her, and yet, you do not have someone to fall into besides your family. You bear the burdens that have come to you for so long, that you are afraid to ask for her permission to love her and cherish her as a equal mate, am I right?" Madame Blossom intervened, knowing that the young terrapin leader was having an internal struggle with himself and laid out the message to him.

He stood shocked, and knew that she was right. He would do whatever was to be done for his family's sake, but also wanting to have Lauren there with him, despite the species between them. He a mutated turtle, and she a human, that would never leave his mind; Leonardo felt a dream that would be diminished for him has finally come to light. Maybe he did have a chance at earning her love, if only he knew that Lauren had her love for him and him alone all these years. He nodded, too utterly shocked by what Madame Blossom had said for him to answer her with words.

Before he could say anymore, he heard his three younger brothers enter the den, all ready with their weapons intact and ready for their mission.

"Everybody ready?" Leonardo asked his brothers, who all nodded quietly and were ready for his orders.

"We'll be back, Madame. Please keep the girls safe." Leo said to Blossom, who nodded and watched the four turtle brothers move out onto their mission, disappearing from her sight.

She looked down at Lauren and sat down next to her oldest niece, stroking her head with gentleness and humming to herself quietly.

"Do not worry, my beautiful _hana_. Your _itoshii _return to you soon." Madame quietly said to Lauren, keeping her hand stroking the black hair as gently as possible.

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April and Vern were driving down the quiet street in their work van, taking a stroll in the quiet night of Manhattan to hopefully clear their thoughts out from the hectic day already. They've looked up and down the streets to hopefully find the girls, but with no luck, and were now parked in front of the abandoned Bellevue Hospital Center, contemplating on the events that have occurred within the last month.

"I don't understand any of this. Why would the girls be targets to some conspiracy that's been kept quiet lately? I mean, they're just high school students who've done nothing wrong and just want to have fun with their lives." April said as she looked out the window in the passenger's side of the vehicle, wondering what was going on in the city's underbelly.

"I don't give a shit about some conspiracy that's going on, all I care about is the girls' safety. This is fucking ridiculous -" Vern began to say when both he and April heard a loud crash from the abandoned hospital, and looked around while not finding anything unusual. Both of them opened their doors, and walked to the side of the building, a flashlight in Vern's hand while trying to locate the source of the mysterious sound. It was very strange indeed, and neither one of them knew that was going on, but would rather not stick around to find any unwelcome company.

"Just a stray cat, O'Neil. There's nothing here, come on." Vern dismissed the sound as both turned around to walk back to the vehicle when they heard a loud voice from above them.

"Woo hoo! We got the stuff, bro!" A loud boisterous voice yelled throughout the night, and both the reporting duo looked at one another before looking above them to see a fire escape ladder on the side of the building.

Vern and April knew something was up, and being a reporting duo, they decided to investigate together. Both ran to the fire escape and pulled the ladder down before ascending their climb up the stairs and platforms. They ran as fast as their legs could carry them, their curiosities piqued with interest that they would be able to find the source of some of the mysteries that have been occurring in the city within the last month. April had hoped she would be able to get some evidence on the mysterious vigilantes that she'd been hearing about that have taken on the Foot clan during the subway incident. Her blood pumping through her veins, adrenaline coursing through her like a sugar high, she had to have this story no matter what. Maybe it would be a clue to helping them find the sisters. April and Vern both reached the top platform of the fire escape, and stopped for a brief moment to catch their breaths while hearing loud voices.

"Great job, Donnie. We've got everything we need." A strong commanding voice said as both Vern and April leaned in to hear the voices better.

"Hopefully this'll be enough for the girls. They do need the medicine more than we do." A high immature voice said as both April and Vern quietly climbed the ladder to see who was up on the rooftop. As soon as they reached the top of the ladder, the reporting duo looked on to see four large shadows gathered on the roof with what looked like supplies from the hospital.

"O'Neil, get your camera." Vern whispered as April fumbled with her jacket pocket to get her camera out to take a picture.

"Like shadows of the night. Completely unseen." A third, baritone voice said as the two large shadows high-fived one another with a third trying to get into the group while the fourth was walking backwards towards the edge of the rooftop.

The camera flashed, catching the four large shadows in the camera's line of view, getting their picture which made all four shadows still in their movements as stone. The light caught their appearances for a brief moment, making April and Vern held their breaths in their throats at what they just witnessed. Four, large reptiles.

They just got the biggest story of their careers.

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**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hahaha! Did you really think I would not give you guys a break with the heart stopping cliffhangers? You should know me by now. So, now I'm starting to put more of the 2014 movie into the storyline now, and I hope you'll enjoy it very much. Sorry for drawing it out, but I like to include everyone in this and now we'll start getting more into the movieverse after this chapter :P Hope you guys enjoy the reading, and reviews are always welcomed! I'll see you in the next chapter :P **


	24. A Rock And A Hard Place

** Author's Note: Hello everybody! Welcome back to another awesome chapter of TMNT! Hope you guys enjoyed the previous chapter because now we're getting into more of the 2k14 movieverse. So, our lovely turtle boys have been caught with a camera flash! What will happen now? Lol, I hope you guys like this chapter coming up for now we get more deeper into the movie :P **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT! All rights go to their creators! I only own my OCs. **

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Leonardo waited on the rooftop while his younger brothers scouted the abandoned hospital, wanting to make sure that there were no intruders of sneak attacks from behind him. He waited patiently, his senses on high alert to make sure his enemies were not in the surrounding area. It was too quiet, which made Leonardo more on edge than ever. His concern for his brothers' safety as well as Lauren's health was on his brain; he scouted the surrounding neighborhoods, keeping his eyes focused on the shadows that dared to play mind games with him. He heard a noise and turned around, his hands ready to grab onto the hilts of his katana swords when he saw Michelangelo come out from a door leading to the building not far from where he stood.

"Woo hoo! We got the goods, bro!" Mikey yelled as he bounced slightly in his steps while carrying a heavy box full of medical supplies. Leonardo sighed in relief, knowing that it was only his youngest, immature brother and not one of their enemies.

"Mikey! Be careful! That's all the supplies I was able to scrounge up, I don't want any of that broken!" Donatello chastised him for being a goof ball with precious cargo. His thoughts were only to get the supplies back to the lair and hope that the medicine he was able to find ,as well as the other important medical supplies would help the girls get better very quickly.

"Jesus, Mikey! Come on, now's not the time to be fuckin' dicking around right now." Raphael growled as he hefted another heavy box full of medical supplies and medicines that they were able to find. He was already in a bad mood as it was, but with the situation at hand as well as being away from Rachel while she was sick, it made him even more irritable than every. He just wanted to come in, grab the stuff, and get back home before any trouble brews, and that's the last thing he wanted at the moment.

"How many boxes do we have Donnie?" Leonardo asked his bespectacled brother who carried a heavy box with ease and knelt down to the ground while rummaging through its contents to make sure he had everything they were looking for.

"We currently have six boxes altogether. Gauze pads, bandages, several first aid kits, penicillin, aspirin, antiseptic wash, plus several items we could use or need in the future. This should last us for quite a while if we use them sparingly." Donatello answered while listing off what he had found in his box, and not counting what was in the other boxes that Michelangelo and Raphael were carrying at the moment.

"Great job, Donnie." Leo complimented on his younger brother for finding the vacant facility, let alone being able to locate all the medical supplies. He was very pleased that they had what they were looking for, and now that they had their mission complete, they could return to the girls back at the lair.

"This is great - now we get to drag all this shit home after already lugging it around?" Raphael grumbled as he set down the three boxes he was carrying, and rolling his shoulders out so they wouldn't be so stiff from all the weight lifting he had done earlier that day.

"Come on, quit your complaining. We had a job to do, and we finished that job, so we can all go home." Leonardo answered his hot headed brother, annoyed that he would have to listen to his brother's complaining already.

"Hopefully this'll be enough for the girls. They do need the medicine more than we do. Oh, my dudette needs me bros; she's got this new video game we can play together." Michelangelo said as he looked down at the two boxes of precious medicine he was carrying, just wanting to get back to his lovely dudette. Leo rolled his eyes at his youngest brother's antics, but he did have a point whether he wanted to admit it or not. He wanted to finish their mission and return to the lair as soon as possible, knowing that the girls would be there waiting for them. Hopefully, Lauren's fever had finally diminished and would be up and moving around.

"It should be more than enough, and we'll have leftover that'll last us a while." Donatello said as he looked at the boxes Mikey was holding then began to pick up his box.

"Like shadows of the night. Completely unseen." Raph said as he grabbed his three boxes and was ready to walk away when a camera flashed before them.

All four turtles stood frozen in their positions, not daring to move after what they had just witnessed. A camera . . . caught them . . . someone had caught them. They couldn't believe it - someone had found out about them, and they had proof of their existence. This sucks. They had spent their lives hiding beneath the city's busy streets and crowded subway stations; burrowed below in the city's sewer system, surviving on whatever they could find. They were very careful when they were out in the open, and always stuck to the shadows to be unseen by any unwanted eyes. And now - they were caught, and there was no way for them to respond to that.

"What was that?" Michelangelo whispered, not moving any part of his body as he stared at Donatello, who was just as in much shock as the others were.

"It's a camera flash." Donnie whispered, not wanting to bring on anymore unwanted attention to them.

"We know it's a camera flash, genius." Leonardo hissed as he stayed completely still, trying to see who and where the intruder was that had sneaked up behind them without moving so much.

"Who's behind the camera flash?" Raphael growled, not believing that they were caught.

"By my calculations, it's a girl and a guy." Donnie answered, as he made an educated guess without looking behind him.

"Are we gonna kill them?" Mikey asked which made everyone almost lose their stone-like stillness.

"What?!" Donnie half whispered half gasped loudly, looking at Mikey like he would really do it.

"With kindness." Mikey joked as they began to slowly lose their stone statue poses and relax slowly.

"Let's go get that camera." Raphael growled as he set down the boxes in his arms to get the damn camera and crush it before anyone saw their ugly faces.

"Guys, what about the girls?" Leonardo asked as he wondered what to do about the situation.

XXXX

April and Vern couldn't believe it - they actually couldn't believe it. They had gotten the biggest story of their careers; the highlight for them to become bigger reporters instead of a B team that had to do all the dirty work for everyone else. They were going to get the best report of all time, and they had all the proof they need that there were vigilantes that were working at night to fight against the Foot clan. And they happen to be . . . four, large, weapon wielding turtles? On two legs? This was the best thing they could get right now, and they had no time to spare.

"Come on, O'Neil, let's go." Vern whispered harshly as he began to descend down the ladder.

April was debating on herself: on one hand, she had more than enough evidence to get the best story of her career, and she needed this push to further herself in her career. On the other hand, she didn't know who these . . . strangers were, and they probably didn't want their identities revealed to the world, and she wasn't so sure if she should put them at risk of exposure. She cleared her head, and decided to climb down the ladder when she heard a voice call out.

"Guys, what about the girls?" The strong commanding voice asked which made both April and Vern stop from their descend on the ladder. They both looked at one another, and back up to the rooftop, debating as to whether they were hearing things right. They said girls? As in their girls who were missing at this very current moment? Maybe these large, reptilian vigilantes would know of something or some clue to where the girls were hiding. They had to know; they had to find them and their best bet was to confront these . . . turtles.

"O'Neil, what the hell are you - oh, shit. O'Neil! Wait up!" Vern hissed as April began climbing back up to the rooftop, hoping that she would be able to find these vigilantes.

XXXX

April got on top of the rooftop, looking around to find where these masked vigilantes went off to. But, to her surprise, they were gone; vanished, disappeared like the shadows she saw them as. April climbed off the ladder and ran onto the rooftop determined to find her story. She turned in circles, hoping to catch them before they were completely gone, but it was too late, they had vanished. April was disappointed to say the least, but she at least got some proof that they were there.

"Hello? I know you're out there. There's no reason to hide anymore. Come out so I can see your face." April challenged them, daring the turtles to come out of their hiding. She had a feeling that they were still here, watching her every movement and debating between them quietly if she was an enemy or an annoying citizen that wanted to get their picture. April stood there for a moment, wanting to know if these vigilantes were afraid or just too cowardly to come out and show themselves. She huffed, and dug in her pockets for her camera, waving it up and displaying it for the world to see.

"You see this? I have something you want, and you have something I want. If you come out and show yourselves, I'll give you the picture from my camera." April announced as she showed off her camera in the air, daring them to come out and take the camera from her hand.

Vern came up from the ladder just as April was taunting the shadowed vigilantes with the camera in her hands. He shook his head in disbelief, wondering what the hell she was thinking. This was their big break as a reporting team, and here she was, ready to fuck it up by giving up their proof. And for what? He didn't now what to believe anymore; Vern had planted his feet onto the rooftop when he saw a large mass of shadow appear behind April, and knocked her unconscious by hitting her in the back and watching as her body fell to the roof, a limp body nonetheless.

"O'NEIL!" Vern yelled as he ran to her, hoping she was alright before he felt someone hit him behind the head, causing him to fall to the roof in a heap. His mind swam while trying to stay conscious, but failed miserably like a terrible headache that wouldn't go away no matter how much medicine you took. Before he lost consciousness, he saw a large shadow kneel down before April and studying her before his eyes slipped close, his world becoming black itself.

XXXX

Hun stood in front of his new master, not believing what he was hearing; he wanted him as well as his Purple Dragons to work together with the Shredder and the Foot Clan. This was complete bullshit! He would rather gut himself like a fish out of water than work for his former master, but, considering the circumstances and the amount of money that was involved in this, he was reconsidering the situation and was more than willing to listen in to Eric Sacks' plan.

"So, do we have an accord, my good friend?" Eric asked Hun as the aged man looked up at his right hand man, hoping that he will accept the terms of his agreement.

"Let me get this correct, Mr. Sacks. You expect me to form an alliance with the Foot, let alone with the Shredder? You want me to use my men, my Purple Dragons, to do half of the dirty work alongside his army of Foot soldiers? This is a serious contract that I am forced to consider myself; what do I get in the exchange for this simple contract? I do not do anything for free, as you know." Hun assessed the situation at hand; on one hand, he wouldn't allow his Purple Dragons to be anywhere near the Foot soldiers, especially after losing many of his men during the fight between the Foot and Shredder at the school's gymnasium. But, on the other hand, it would give him an opportunity to allow himself inside the operations that the Foot are planning on a daily basis, and have some of the profit shares that he would be receiving from Eric Sacks privately. Not only that, but he would also have an insight to knowing Shredder's secrets and weaknesses he would use against his former master. It was a very tough decision, but one that he was willing to make in order to get closer to his goals along with his new master's goals as well.

"What else will I get in exchange? Money is one thing, but I feel like there should be more to this?" Hun asked, wanting to know if there would be more to the contract that he would be receiving if he agreed to it.

"You'll have your chance to hunt down the turtles as well as first dibs on the girls. All four of them." Eric answered, watching the smile appear and grow on Hun's scarred face. He liked this - he wanted those girls for some time. They would make an excellent addition to his growing empire on the streets. And with their abilities and knowledge of the art of ninjitzu, it would be a chance to teach his men how to fight against the Foot soldiers. And with a little interest on the money side, he was more than willing to sacrifice his pride and dignity to go along with this plan.

"We have an agreement, master." Hun said as he bowed to Eric, who smiled greedily at what was going to happen in the future. His master, his beloved adoptive father, had no idea what was going on behind his back, which was something that he would like to keep on the down low.

XXXX

April stirred in her sleep, her head pounding terribly as she began to open her eyes little by little; the world seemed to spin around her as she fully opened her eyes, and grabbed the side of her head while slowly beginning to sit up. She was able to sit up and rub the back of her head, feeling like someone had hit her hard enough with a baseball bat made out of muscle and bone. It hurt terribly, and it gave her the worst headache she had ever received, more so than not having her caffeine fix within a two week period of time. When her mind came fully back to her body, she had discovered that she was lying on a couch, a very hard couch, and took it upon herself to investigate it. She pulled the blanket from the back of said couch, and learned that it was made out of cardboard pizza boxes. She looked around, and noted that she was in a place made out of concrete; a place where no one should know about and it was something that caught her interest and caused her curiosity to pique higher. April stood up from the couch, and began to look around when she caught sight of Vern on the couch. He, too, was also out like a light, and she hoped that they weren't kidnapped for ransom or to be killed.

"Vern! Vern, wake up!" April whispered harshly, shaking her reporting partner hard as the man woke up with a start and started looking around the environment.

"Where are we?" Vern asked, sitting up quickly and looked around, wondering where the hell they were at.

"If I had to take an educated guess - we're somewhere in the New York City sewer system. I'm not entirely sure, but it does seem a bit cozy." April said as she helped Vern sit up from the couch. She had no idea where they were exactly, but all she knew was that they were safe - at least, they thought they were.

"Don't get too comfy, girlie. You're not out of the woods yet." A gruff voice said harshly as both Vern and April looked behind them to reveal Raphael, who sat on a chair backwards, the back of the chair in front of his chest and plastron.

April and Vern were speechless - utterly speechless. They had no idea what to make of this, a giant talking turtle sporting a red bandana do rag staring at them with a deathly look in his amber eyes. It was one thing to catch a picture of them from a safe distance; it was completely different when you were only fifteen feet away from an over six foot tall talking turtle with a bad attitude and chewing on a toothpick keeping watch on you. Both stood still as they took in this mammoth creature, their brains trying to register that this wasn't a bad dream but a rude awakening that neither one of them were prepared for.

"You - you're a talking turtle." Vern stuttered, not sure how to respond to this.

"Yeah, yeah I'm a talking turtle. And you're a human nerd, now that we got that out of the way, have a seat 'cause you got some 'splaining to do." Raphael chuckled darkly as both the man and woman sat back down on the couch, not sure what else to do. Raph was pissed - well, pissed wasn't a real word to describe how he was feeling about this. He didn't like the fact that there were two strangers in their home - a man and woman who were a reporting team that had taken a picture of them on the rooftop not that long ago. He didn't trust these two and he made damn sure that his intimidating presence be made known that they weren't welcome down here. He would've said something to them but old fearless came into the den, and Raphael, for once actually kept his mouth shut for the time being.

"Well, this is an unexpected circumstance. Now, the question is what were you doing up on the rooftop taking a picture of us?" Leonardo asked as he folded his arms across the bony plates of his chest, staring down at the duo.

April was at a loss of words, she didn't realize just how much trouble she was in. All she wanted was a picture to help solidify her story, and here she was, along with Vern, being scolded by a giant humanoid turtle for doing something just because she was a reporter doing her job. But that wasn't her main concern - she wanted to know where the girls were, and maybe these turtles would be the answer to her questions.

"W-We were just -"

"Snooping, that's what you was doin', am I right?" Raphael growled, his eyes not leaving the female reporter. April looked down, her eyes gazing down at her boots, knowing that she was indeed snooping but for a good reason.

"Raph! Come on, I'm sure she had a good reason." Leo tried to calm his younger brother down, knowing that his temper wouldn't get them anywhere.

"Yeah, to show off that we're freaks! Show them to her friends and let them laugh at our existence. I say we just break the damn thing." Raphael growled harshly, almost jumping out of his chair, and stalking back and forth in front of his older brother while grabbing the camera out of Leo's hand.

"Don't break it. No, no, no, please." April begged as she saw her red camera in the red-banded turtle's large hand, ready to crush the little electronic toy on her. She needed that camera, it was part of her work ethic, and she wouldn't know what to do if she didn't have it on hand.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Raph? We don't break things, we fix them, alright? Besides, Donnie already wiped both the camera and the phone; our problem is solved, nothing more than that." Leonardo chastised his brother, annoyed that all Raphael wanted to do was break things instead of fixing them. Little did Leo or Raph realize that Michelangelo and Donatello walked in on the two arguing in front of the human couple. Vern and April looked back and forth between the two large turtles, then widened their eyes when they saw the other two come walking in.

"And who put you in charge, asshole?" Raphael snarled while pushing his brother hard against the shoulder, daring the older one to do something about it.

"You know who did." Leonardo challenged, daring his brother to start the fight, because the two of them knew that it was a fight that Leo would win hands down.

"Oooh, tension. It's been how long since their last argument, Donnie-boy?" Michelangelo chided, wondering who was going to blow first and who would win.

"About thirty five minutes and forty two seconds since their last argument." Donatello answered while calculating the minutes in his head.

The two oldest brothers were ready to throw down in the middle of the den when they heard a voice from their bedroom, a young female voice. All heads turned to see Rachel coming out, who was only clad in an over-sized t-shirt that hung down to her mid thighs, her hair up on two half buns and the rest falling down behind her back. Her brown streaked blonde hair glowed in the dim lit den, and Raphael had all of his focus on Rachel; God damn, she looked freaking hot in his shirt, but he didn't have the mindset to tell her with everyone else in the room.

"Well, shit bunnies. This is just great." Rachel grumbled as she saw April and Vern on the couch looking at her in disbelief.

"Rachel, what are you doing here?" April asked as she looked at her friend, who stood there not knowing what to do.

"Um, sleeping until you asshats woke me up." Rachel growled as she sent death glares at the reporting duo.

"Sleeping? _Sleeping_?! You call this - being down here in a fucking sew -" Vern exasperated as he jumped up from the couch, ready to start a round of banter at the stubborn girl until he saw Lauren come into the den. She was also wearing a large t-shirt that came down to her knees, but only a blue color instead of red and sporting her black hair up in a loose bun, stray pieces protruding from the bun.

"April? Vern? What are you guys doing here?" Lauren asked as she looked at the reporting duo in confusion.

"Um . . . Well, we were -" April tried to explain until Vern cut her off, getting more enraged at the situation.

"Trying to find you guys until we were kidnapped by these freaks -" Vern to explain to the girls when Rachel glared at Vern and lost her temper.

"DON'T CALL THEM FREAKS!" Rachel roared which made Vern shut his mouth completely and didn't say a word. Rachel normally never lost her temper with the reporting duo, but the way Vern called them freaks just made her blood boil even more than having the fever. She hated the word, and she didn't like how he called Raphael a freak, her Raphael alone. Whoa - where did that thought come from?

"Guys? Why is everyone yelling?" Danielle asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes as she slowly came from the lab, not realizing that she was only in a bra and panties. Her hair was disheveled, her skin still a little clammy and flush, but overall, she was walking and moving about a little bit. She stopped rubbing her eyes, and put her glasses on to see April and Vern as well as the turtle brothers looking at her in disbelief, their cheeks tinted with a heavy red blush. Danielle, not knowing what was going on, looked at Donatello, who looked so flushed that he was about to have a nosebleed from what she was wearing.

"DANIELLE! Put on some clothes, woman!" April yelled, which made Danielle come out of her reverie, and look down at her own body. She realized that she was only on her bra and underwear, and gasped in shock while trying to cover herself up with her arms. She shrieked a little and collapsed to the floor, embarrassed beyond anything as she tried her best to cover up. She felt a blanket being wrapped around her body, and looked to see Donatello, who tried not to look at her half nakedness and only at her face, a faint blush still creeping up on his cheeks. Danielle pulled the blanket tighter around her, and pushed herself more into Donnie for support.

"Dudes! You're back, I didn't think you -" Eri yelled as she came bouncing out of the meditation room, her long hair starting to curl and pulled into two pigtails. She had Michelangelo's comforter wrapped around her, and stopped when she saw what was going on, and immediately went on to the defense.

"I didn't do it! Whatever it was, I didn't do it!" Eri said as she threw her hands up claiming her innocence, the comforter pooling around her feet to reveal her in a scantly bikini set. Mikey couldn't peel his eyes away, and wanted to just take her back to the room so he could have his way with her.

"Dudette, you look friggin' hot right now." Mikey said as he drooled over her hot body. Eri looked at him then blushed as she looked at him then at April and Vern, who were looking at them in disbelief and not processing the situation at hand.

"What the fuck is going on here?! You guys know these, these - dudes?!" Vern yelled at the four girls, wanting an answer as to what the hell was going on and how the girls knew the turtles.

"Well -" Lauren tried to explain when April got up and walked away from the couch.

"I think we need to get you girls home and in a safe bed." April chided as she tried to lead Eri and Danielle away from the two turtles they were close to and out of the dump. Both younger siblings stopped and looked at April in hurt.

"We can't leave, April. You don't understand what's going on." Danielle tried to explain, but felt her fever coming back in full force. Donatello swept into action and lead her to the couch where she sat and began to couch heavily.

"You guys are in danger here." April tried to convince them, but it was like they were under some spell that the turtles may have held over them.

"We're not in danger, guys. We're okay, we just need you to understand that they're not trying to hurt us at all." Erica said as she pleaded to the reporting duo.

"It doesn't matter - these guys are BIG news to us." Vern said as he looked at the four turtles, and not realized that he spilled his guts to the girls with what their real intentions were here.

"NO WAY! You put them on the news and half the city will be after them!" Lauren put her foot down as she glared at her so called "best friends". She couldn't believe this - here was her supposed best friends that they looked up to over the years, trusted them with their wildest secrets, and yet, they were going to spill their biggest secret to the world that no one should know about period.

"They spent all their lives down here in the sewers, hiding from society because of their fear of rejection and ridicule! They finally have the chance to be accepted by us, and they're not going to be locked up in glass cages, damnit!" Rachel growled as she glared at both April and Vern with death in her eyes. She wasn't going to let them leave here with this precious information.

"Which means you're staying here until we work this out." Lauren informed them, her game face on as she stood up to the two adults. A fight was ready to be brewing, and the turtles had no idea how to handle this. It was all chaos.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Hello, dudes and dudettes! I know I'm a little late for getting the chapter up, but work was killing me here. So, we've got plenty of chaos going on around here, and now the girls and turtles are in a bit of a pickle here. How do you deal with this if you were in a situation similar like this? :P Well, you'll have to find out in the next chapter then, my lovelies. I'll see you in the next chapter, reviews are welcomed as always. And if you have any ideas on how to take the chapters in different directions, I'm all up for it. Enjoy! :) **


	25. Tension And Chaos

**Author's Note: Hello, everybody! Welcome back to TMNT 2k14! I'm so happy hat you guys are enjoying the story and are always waiting for the next chapter each time. 150 reviews! You guys are awesome, and I want to thank you all for those who took the time to review it and follow/favorite it. I also want to make a special shoutout to following people: _ciarabrightblade_, _Mindy1981_, _SuperHERO382_, _Fantasytraveler_ and _TMNTKunoich_ - you guys are freaking awesome and I can't thank you enough! I dedicate this chapter for you guys! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Vern couldn't believe what he was hearing - both he and April were to stay below, in a sewer, with four over six foot tall talking turtles, and four girls who were trying to get over from being sick and wearing clothes that didn't cover them completely? What the damn hell was going on here? These girls were missing twice within a month and a half time span, and yet, they were down here in a damp sewer home with four giant turtle freaks? This was once seriously fucked up situation, and he had no idea how to wrap his head around this one. Being a cameraman for quite a while, he had seen many things that were gritty and weird, but this one took the cake in his book.

"Wait, what? You can't be serious about this, right?" April asked as she looked at Lauren incredulously, wondering if she heard exactly what was said earlier.

"You heard us. You two are staying down here until we work this mess out." Lauren said defiantly as she stood her ground against the two adults. There was no way she was going to let either one of them out of her knowing that the turtles were their secret; she would rather slice the camera and phone with her katana than let any proof of the turtles' existence be brought to light.

"W-what?! I don't believe this! You expect us to stay down here?! In a sewer, with four giant fr-" Vern exasperated as he looked between the girls and the four turtle brothers, ready to say the "F" bomb before Rachel shot over to the camera man, and held a sai against his throat with a deathly glare in her eyes.

"RACHEL!" Lauren yelled as she watched her sister move at Vern with a deadly stealth that assassins used. She had never seen Rachel this upset before, and it scared her to no end.

"VERN!" April yelled as she tried to come to his aid, only to be held back by Eri, who shook her head no and let the scene before them take its course.

"Let me explain something to you, old man. First of all, you're not going to be using that word down here anymore, got it? Second, you have no idea what the hell we've been through for the last month and a half, so you don't get to come down here and order us around like little school kids anymore! These brothers are the reason why we're still alive, and I'm not going to stand here and let you talk shit about them, when all they've done is help us and treat us like equals. Especially Raphael! You so much as say one wrong word down here, and I'll slice your fucking throat! Got it?!" Rachel threatened, her voice hoarse and going higher in volume while pressing the steel of her sai closer to Vern's throat, ready to strike and slice it open. How dare he call them freaks, let alone _her_ Raphael?! She breathed harshly while glaring at the man in front of her, watching his Adam's apple bob up and down before he raised his hands up in surrender, fear in his eyes.

Raphael had never seen Rachel like this, and it shocked him to the core that she would go out of her way to protect his identity as well as his brothers' identities. Never had someone risked their neck for him, let alone a female, and yet here she was, her weapon ready to slit the throat of someone she considered a friend because he called them freaks. It melted his stoned heart, and made him realize just how much more she meant to him, even if he wouldn't allow anyone else to know that fact. He walked over to her, and laid his large hand on her shoulder gently, pulling her out of her deadly reverie with the human man. Rachel looked up at Raphael, her green eyes staring at him with unshed tears; her cheeks still had a little blush to them, her skin a little warm from the fever, but overall, she was a daring beauty that he wouldn't trade.

"Hey, hey. Come on, Rachel, don't be like that. I'm used to being called that." Raphael soothed her quietly, as he tried to calm her with his voice.

"B-But he -"

"It doesn't make it right for you to threaten him because of a single word. It's just a word, and I'm used to it. Now come on, let go of the sai." Raphael said wisely, which was very rare for him to say anything wise at all.

Rachel stared up at Raphael, whose golden pools calmed her down almost immediately. She never heard him talk like this, and it shocked her just as much as everyone else in the room. She gazed into those amber orbs, losing herself in their warming gaze he held for her and her alone. She vaguely felt him pull her away from Vern, and gently took hold of the hand with the sai. Her fingers felt like jello, and she let go of her prized weapon, which was held carefully in Raph's hand. Her eyes held unshed tears, her body shaking almost violently that she needed to release her repressed anger before it consumed her completely. She bit her lip hard, and shoved at him before briskly walking away from the den and into the workout room not far from the dojo. Raphael sighed heavily, knowing that he needed to keep her calm before she blew like a volcano. He knew what it was like to be angry all the time, and he would get upset over the stupidest things, but he also knew that Rachel was his and needed to tend to her quickly. He glanced down at her weapon, then glared at Vern, who quickly backed away from the large turtle, and walked away from everyone into the workout room, hoping he could talk to Rachel.

Lauren looked on in amazement, not knowing what to say or do in this matter. She looked to Leonardo, who looked after Raphael then back at her, his bright blue eyes roaming her body with carefulness and gentle concern. She smiled shyly at him, then looked at April who had no idea what was going on.

"Okay, maybe we should let someone explain everything to Vern and April a little bit better than we can." Lauren said as she looked at everyone else in the room, wondering how they would explain the situation to the two human adults.

"I believe that would call for me and Splinter, my dear." Shimizu said as both she and Splinter appeared in the den, looking at the girls then the turtles then to April, who stared at the two large senseis in disbelief. They looked at April, their curiosity for the young woman intrigued them as they watched her overlook them before falling to the floor unconscious.

"Oh, I think that went well." Leonardo said as Vern went over to April to check on her and make sure she didn't hit her head hard on the concrete floor.

"Well, I believe we should all have a decent nap before things get messy. And for goodness sake, Erica, will you and Danielle please put on some clothes that will make you both look decent? You're about to give me as well as Splinter heart attacks." Shimizu said as she looked at everyone then to her two youngest daughters, who blushed heavily before returning to their rooms.

XXXX

Hun walked into the dojo of his new master's home, the dark room emulating very little light throughout the room as he looked around. He was on edge, although he didn't show it, he was very anxious as to see what would transpire in here today as well as if his master would convince the Shredder to reconcile for the time being. He disliked his former master with a passion; the old master never gave him credit where it was due, never rewarded him with his efforts and disgraced him with his lack of honor back in the day. However, times have changed, and he now had an empire that brewed underneath the belly of the black market, his Purple Dragons claiming to all the good buyers and their stocks that the Foot once held on with an iron fist. Now, hopefully, this little ploy that his new master had in stock would allow a truce for the two empires to unite and bring down their common enemy for the time being.

He sensed a presence behind him, and knelt down to the floor on one knee, his head bowed in respect as he felt his master's presence enter the room. Eric Sacks had entered behind Hun, and turned to bow his head to his new right hand man. The aged man was ready for the plan to come into essence, and hopefully his master would appreciate what would come about.

"_Naze anata wa, koko ni gakusei o kare ni motte kita?_" The Shredder spoke to Eric as he appeared from behind the two men. Eric turned around to meet his master, the old adoptive father figure looking down at him with angry stormed eyes that seethed blood thirst for his former protege. The aged master was still weak and injured from the fight that occurred at the school, but he wouldn't show any signs of weakness. His master was a great warrior that rose from the ashes like the phoenix.

"I have a proposal for you, my master. Hun has brought this attention to me that the turtles as well as the girls have been the missing link to our research all those years ago. They are the reason why we couldn't replicate the mutagen we were working on. He would allow his Purple Dragons to work with the Foot clan in order to find the turtles and the girls." Eric began to reason with the Shredder, his brain hoping that he would take the bait. Hun kept his eyes trained on the floor beneath him, silently praying that this would work.

"_Sore nimokakawarazu, jūyōna shōri ni naru onajiyōna mokuhyō o eru tame ni, doragonzu o sōsa suru ni wa. Shikashi, watashi wa kare ga watashitachi o uragiru koto wa arimasen koto o dono yō ni shitte iru nodarou ka?_" The Shredder replied in his native tongue to Eric, causing the aged business man to pause for a moment to think of his next words, to convince his father that he would trust the man behind him.

"He has given us a contract with his blood on it, giving his honor and his empire of the Purple Dragons to reclaim our prizes. The city will be ours." Eric said as he looked back at Hun, who nodded while keeping his gaze to the floor.

The Shredder was no fool, he would kill his enemies without a moment's hesitation. But, considering that his forces were weak from their previous fight, and that the Purple Dragons were a force to be reckoned with, he would actually consider to have an alliance with them in order to obtain the girls as well as the turtles if possible. Looking between Hun and his adoptive son, he knew that matters would be much in his favor if he agreed to this.

"_Hijō ni yoku. Watashitachiha, kono otoko wa watashitachi to kyōryoku suru koto ga dekimasu. Shikashi, keikoku sa reru - kare wa watashitachi o uragitta baai, watashi wa kare no nodo o suraisu dakedenaku, doragonzu no kare no teikoku o keshi saru koto o chūcho shinaideshou._" The Shredder answered as he looked at his protege in front of him, who bowed his head in respect while his master left the dojo to meditate in peace.

After waiting a few moments to make sure that his master was finally gone, Eric turned around while watching Hun rise up from the floor and stand in front of him. A large smile appeared on both of their faces, knowing that he had fallen for their trap.

"Welcome back to the Foot, Hun." Eric said as Hun smiled gleefully.

"It's good to be back, my master." Hun said evilly as he cracked his knuckles in joy.

XXXX

Rachel was in the weight room for a while, her fists punching the bean bag in front of her with velocity and ferociousness that rivaled Raphael's anger. She was so mad at the whole situation with Vern and April as well as herself. She had never cried before in front of anyone, let alone him; she let her weakness show up and she hated herself for it. She was a tough girl, a badass, a skilled kunoichi that could fight the Foot and the Purple Dragons at the same time. And yet, the way Raphael handled her in front of everyone, how gentle and calm he was to her, sent violent shivers up and down her spine. She wasn't used to this treatment from anyone, especially him, and with her fever dying down, she was starting to get back to her normal self. Although, she wouldn't admit it, she did like how gentle and caring he was to her.

"You know, you keep hitting that and your knuckles are going to bleed open." A rough voice entered the weight room, which made Rachel stop punching the bag to turn around and see Raphael, who leaned against the doorway on his shoulder while chewing on a toothpick. Rachel huffed, not wanting to deal with Raphael right now - her emotions were so scrambled right now that she was ready to blow off on anyone that came near her.

"Go away, Raph." Rachel grumbled as she continued to hit the punching bag, her hits becoming harder and more violent than before. She was in her zone, and she wasn't going to let him one up her about what happened out in the den. She hit the bad harder, adding some kicks to her mix, and proceeded to beat the punching bag as hard as she could.

Raphael knew how upset she was about what happened in the den earlier, but her anger was not going to release its hold on her yet. He knew what it was like to be angry all the time, and how it could consume you if you didn't control it; he had almost fallen down the same path she was on right now many times, and it was best to let out all that tension before she hurt someone or herself. Raphael sighed deeply as he pulled away from his spot on the doorway and walked up to her quietly, hoping that he would talk some sense into her. He slowly came up to her, his bulking frame towering over her petite body, watching her intently as she continued to pummel the punching bag, her hits becoming more frequent and harder each second. She was in her zone - her mindset not caring about anything else but pain, hurting something to make her pain go away. She needed that release, that feeling of content and calmness she only felt after a good workout. But her anger, her seething pain that she radiated from within wouldn't let her go to the tranquil place - so her only option was to beat the pain out of her.

"Rachel -"

"I said go away!" Rachel growled as her fists collided harder into the rough material of the bag, the hardness that she felt against her knuckles began to break open the soft, silky skin of her hands. He smelled the blood before he saw the first drops of the dark red liquid.

"Rachel!" Raphael yelled as he watched her punch the bag one last time before watching the chain break off and the bag came crumbling down to the floor.

"**FUCK OFF, RAPH!**" Rachel roared as she whipped around to glare at the large terrapin, which caused him to gasp in shock as he saw her face.

Rachel's beautiful green eyes bore tears; her eyes streaming twin trails of tears down her beautiful face like a river that shouldn't exist at all. Those green eyes he could get lost in so very easily if it weren't for the fact that she not only angry but also saddened, hurt, confused and raging out all of her pent up emotions that she needed to let out. Rachel huffed and heaved in ragged breaths, and growling under breath, began to pound her fists into the bony plates of his chest, taking the blows like they were little knocks. He stood his ground and let her beat out her aggression on him, absorbing her weakened blows into his chest before wrapping his large arms around her spastic body and pulling her tight to him. Rachel continued to beat his chest, her blows becoming weaker and weaker until she clutched at his bony plating of his chest. She buried her face into his chest and poured out her pent up feelings, sobbing loudly and brokenly; Raphael felt broken and hurt as he held her, letting her pour her emotions out. It broke his heart to see her like this, his battle hardened beauty so vulnerable and defeated with her own self made him even more determined to protect her.

Rachel felt her sobbing begin to quiet down, her chest not as tight but still hurting from her pent up emotions; she hiccuped a little, her shoulders still shaking but only slightly. She looked up and he smirked a little while chewing on his toothpick; her hair clung to her cheek a little, plastered to her like a second skin. He swept the hair away from her cheek, and stroked his thumb across her cheeks, brushing the tears away from her gorgeous face. He peered down at her, seeing her pleading eyes bore up to him made his heart stutter in its staccato. Rachel looked up at him, needing his reassurance that she wasn't going to be taken away from him; needing his knowledge that he knew how much she cared about him, and he for her.

"Rachel . . ." Raphael started to say when she placed her fingertips to his large lips, feeling his chapped skin beneath her soft pads.

"I-I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Raph." Rachel hiccuped as she looked up at him with pleading eyes, her unshed tears highlighted and brightened her light green eyes, seeing a horizon of unspoken emotions that demanded to be heard, but were afraid to be spoken.

Raph smiled at her, taking out his toothpick and soothing her quietly with his thumb against her cheek. There was no need for words between them, just unspoken emotions that needed to run their course. Actions did speak louder than words, and Raphael was definitely an action kind of person. He leaned down slowly, his amber eyes never leaving hers and watching in awe as she closed her eyes in submission, awaiting for his secret kiss. He closed his eyes, and let nature take its course; his chapped lips touched her silky plump ones, the small, simple touch between them sending little sparks between their bodies, electricity sparkling little messages throughout their bodies.

Their moment of peace was cut to a brief standstill when Raphael felt a presence enter the room, he pulled away and glared at the door way, his amber eyes almost glowing a bright gold in annoyance and agitation to whoever was there to disturb their inner world. Leonardo stared at him, wondering what was going on, but getting a quick insight of the situation between him and Rachel. Leo looked a bit irritated, but it was hard to read him; after all these years, even Raph had a hard time reading the oldest brother, not sure what he was feeling or thinking was always making him scratch at his head in question and confusion.

"Hey." Leonardo simply said as he eyed his younger brother and Rachel in his arms.

"Hey." Raph responded, eyeing his brother wearily while holding Rachel carefully in his arms.

"You know she's bleeding, right?" Leo asked, taking in consideration that her hands were still busted open.

"Yeah, I know. I'm gettin' her cleaned up." Raph growled as he scooped her up in his large arms and began to carry her out of the weight room, his eyes never leaving Leo. It was as if he was challenging "fearless leader" to say anything more just to aggravate him even more.

"We need to confront the two human adults about our existence." Leo said as Raph rolled his eyes at the mere mention of the two humans, but he knew that Leonardo was right, as always.

He sighed and didn't say a word to his brother, but simply carried Rachel to the needle room, knowing that she needed her hands tended to before they got infected. He knew that the two adults would have to be on their radar constantly, to make them secure and sure that they won't reveal their secret to the media in general. Raphael knew that it would have to be done, but there was no way around it - they would have to be punished.

XXXX

Michelangelo and Erica were in the kitchen, cooking up a mega storm of whatever they could find in the mini refrigerator that occupied their living space. The oven was on, cooking the pizza and french fries while the top of the stove was boiling water to make the chocolate melt for their desserts that they wanted to create. Both were in their little world and didn't realize that Vern had come waltzing in to see what there was to do since the incident earlier with Rachel. He and April had been in the meditation room with Master Splinter and Shimizu; the two rodent senseis explained to the human adults what had transpired within the last month and a half as well as delve into the history of how the turtles came to be. Vern scratched the back of his neck while approaching the youngest couple of the turtles, hoping that they wouldn't treat him any different than they had earlier.

"Hey, Vern." Eri said sweetly, her fingers sticky and covered in a mess of melted chocolate. Her sweet smile never left her face, and Vern smiled sheepishly when he saw Michelangelo turn around to greet the human adult.

"Hey, dude. You're just in time, the dudette and I are making dinner and dessert. Wanna help?" Mikey asked as he smiled at the man, his hands breaking apart chocolate and putting them in the top pan that sat in the pot of boiling water underneath.

"Sure. So, what are you guys making?" Vern asked as he looked at the two wondering what was going through their minds at their concoctions that were in the process of being made.

"Hawaiian pizza with french fries in the oven, and making a chocolate pie with real melted chocolate pieces." Eri answered as she stirred the spoon in the pot of melted chocolate, the pie crust all prepped and ready to be filled with the chocolate goodness.

"Wow. So - you guys are the cooks of the family?" Vern asked as he tried to get in their way with their devious cooking skills.

"Totally, bro. I can make a really mean pizza." Michelangelo bragged as he flexed the muscles in his arm, proving that he was not only strong but also an awesome cook.

"Wait a minute, now. I'm the one who can make the best pizza, dude. I do have a title for that, you know." Eri interjected as she glared at him with a mockery of disbelief.

"No way, dudette. I've been making pizzas for years, and I can make the ultimate perfect pizza." Mikey boasted as he got closer to Eri, both standing up to one another while trying to see who had the better pizza making skills.

"Really, dude?"

"Really, dudette."

Vern had no idea what he had walked into, but he knew it was about to go down really quick. The timer went off on the oven, and chaos ensued faster than he could blink. The oven door flew open as the pizza and french fries went flying between the turtle and young girl while Vern took cover underneath the table, watching in disbelief and awe as the two ninja began their food fight with one another.

XXXX

Lauren sat cross-legged in the middle of the dojo floor, her demeanor peaceful and calm as she meditated while trying to block out the noise that radiated from the kitchen. She had to keep calm since her fever had diminished very quickly after having the medicine the boys brought home; she was very thankful for them on taking care of her and her sisters. She had no idea what she would've done if it weren't for them; Lauren had owed them big time for finding all of those medical supplies. She breathed in deeply and slowly exhaled, but her senses remained sharp as she heard a faint set of footsteps come into the dojo. Without having to open her eyes or look up, she could tell it was Leonardo, who was trying to keep quiet and not disturb her. She smiled - even when they weren't in battle and being comfortable around one another, he was still a master at the art of invisibility.

"I wondered when you would be showing up." Lauren said as she heard Leo walk around and stop in front of her.

"How are you feeling?" Leonardo asked as he extended his hand out to her while helping her up on her feet, watching as she tried to get her bearings together while slipping an arm around her waist.

"Much better now, thank you." Lauren answered as she smiled up at him, taking in his bright blue eyes and searching his thoughts with her royal blur orbs.

Both held each other with the utmost respect as well as devotion, and pure instinct of equality; neither wanted to leave the other, but it was the way of a leader for their families. Both didn't want this lifestyle, but it was a little choice between them; they had responsibilities and obligations to uphold in their households, but fate seemed to weave them together. They tried to read the other's thoughts and feelings quietly and secretly, their own feelings towards the other almost blinding their other senses to the surroundings. Leonardo brought his hand up to her loose bun, and slowly pulled out the band that held it up, letting the black strands fall like a dark waterfall in the middle of the night down her back. Her almond shaped eyes looked up at him, entranced by his handsomeness as well as the mysterious aura he inflicted upon her.

Magnets to one another; a flame that flickered and enticed them closer to touch and feel, Lady Love's arms drawing these two leaders closer to the other, begging them to take that leap of faith and feel what love would taste like. It was so close - they needed to feel the other's taste beneath their lips, treading into uncharted waters that were ready to be discovered. Leaning in close, their breaths mingled with one another -sweet green tea with peppermint and midnight lilies with jasmine. The combination of the two concoctions was making both dizzy, and closing their eyes, they slowly leaned in to fill the gap between them. Their lips lightly grazed each other's just as someone entered the dojo.

"Um, I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" April asked as she looked at the two teenage leaders with curiosity and confusion.

Both Lauren and Leonardo were broken away from their spell, and turned to see April standing there, wondering how long she had been there to see what had almost transpired between the two. Lauren backed away from Leo, silently missing his warmth and embrace already, but walked up to April with determination in her eyes, hoping that her friend would reconsider putting the turtles on the media spread.

"April . . . have you decided what you want to do about the situation?" Lauren asked, her mind and body going still as she anticipated the response.

"Yes, and I promise to keep them a secret. But only if I get an interview with one of you, of course." April answered as she smiled at Lauren, who looked at her with dead eyes before doing the unthinkable.

**_SLAP!_**

Lauren slapped her across the face; how dare she?! She wasn't sure if April was kidding or being serious at this point, but it didn't matter. She wasn't going to say a word about this to anyone, and that meant not getting an interview with her or any of her sisters. April looked shocked and returned the favor by slapping Lauren across the face, not believing that the younger girl would do such a thing. Both April and Lauren were stubborn when it came to what they wanted, and neither one of them was going to let up. Lauren issued another slap to April, and April issued a second slap to Lauren. Before Leonardo knew it, a bitch slap war waged on between the two women, their cheeks and hands were red and sore before he intervened, not wanting either one of them to be damaged or seriously injured.

"Alright, alright, alright, enough. Come on, enough out of the both of you." Leonardo intervened as he broke the two women apart before being slapped by them both. He looked on as the two women stared each other down, testing and readying themselves for another round of slapping. That is, until they heard the chaos that ensued in the kitchen.

"**I make the better pizzas, dude! Now admit it!**" Eri yelled loud as the three could hear pots and pans clashing and clattering around in the kitchen from the dojo.

"**Never! You will never make me submit, dudette!**" Mikey yelled as more clattering and chaos could be heard.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Haha, I have to end it at some point. So now we are starting to see where things are going between the turtles, the girls and April and Vern. And we're also seeing where things are going with Hun, the Foot, Shredder and Sacks. Sorry it took me so damn long to post this, but work has kept me away from my baby ;) I hope you guys are enjoying this because the next chapter will have some surprises coming up soon. I hoep you enjoy your little taste here for the tension and chaos. I will see you in the next chapter. Reviews are welcomed :D **


	26. A First For Everything

**Author's Note: Hello everybody! Welcome back to TMNT 2k14! So I wanted to get some stuff out of the way before we get back into the swing of things. I can't believe how much you guys are enjoying the story so far :) I know I didn't put Donnie and Dani in the previous chapter, but fret not, I will have them in this chapter a bit more. I wanted to focus on the other three couples to get them where I wanted them to be before going back to them :) Now I hope to get some action coming up within the chapter or the next one. So, onward with the chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs. **

XXXX

Danielle was in the lab with Donatello, her large t-shirt hanging over her and down to the tops of her knees; Danielle felt a little self conscious when she realized how short the shirt came to her. Danielle realized that her shirt was a light purple, and knew that was the color of Donatello's mask. She fiddled with the edge of the shirt, her shy smile tugging at the edges of her lips; her hair was a little disheveled, the brown strands sticking up slightly from the hours she was in bed and asleep in her fevered state. She was definitely feeling a lot better since sleeping off the fever and the chills; she never felt any better than that, and it was all because of Donatello's efforts.

"Alright, Danielle. I just want to do a quick overview of your vitals to make sure you aren't having anymore signs of the sickness." Donatello said as he came over with a couple of pills in one hand and a glass of water in the other hand. Danielle smiled as she gladly accepted the medicine and the water, quickly swallowing the pills and downing the water with ease. She pushed up her glasses to keep them from falling off, the thick black glasses round and large, highlighting her beautiful teal eyes to show off to the world; even without the make up that she normally wore to bring out her eyes, she was still a beauty.

Donatello pulled his goggles over his glasses, and read her vital signs: temperature was ninety nine point two degrees Fahrenheit, skin wasn't clammy or blotted, breathing was normal - she was better! He let out a sigh of relief, not knowing he was holding his breath for a long period of time. He was relieved that she was better; he wouldn't say it to her, but he was very relieved that she was alright. He pushed his goggles up to his forehead, and smiled at her, happy that she was much better than before.

"Well, temperature has dropped to a little above normal, perspiration minimum, zero red blotches around facial -" Donatello began to babble as he looked over Danielle, who placed her fingertips on his lips, silencing his technobabble with a smile on her face. Danielle giggled as she watched him blush at her action, and looked up at him while caressing his cheek carefully, afraid that she would break him.

"Donnie, I'm alright. I mean it. Thank you for everything. You didn't have to -" Danielle said as she tried to tell Donatello, but was cut off by him who gently grasped her shoulders, and set his gaze at her.

"Danielle. I wanted to because I felt that it was the right thing to do. Anyone in their right mind would've done the same thing. I just - well, I-I-I wanted to make sure, you - well ..." Donatello stuttered as he looked into her teal eyes, those very eyes that stared back at him with an admiration that border lined affection and love.

"Donnie -"

"Danielle, I, well - uhm, I just . . . I wish you didn't have to see me like this. I mean, maybe, well - if I was human, it would be a lot better between us." Donatello stuttered, blushing as he tried to form the right words to say to her.

"What do you mean?" Danielle asked as she placed her small hands on top of his larger ones, feeling the scaly skin beneath her soft flesh.

"I just wish that I was normal. That way, well, you wouldn't be trapped down here with a mutant. Maybe you could've had a prince charming to tend to your needs, cater to you on a daily basis and love you for yourself. And I - well, I can't have that." Donatello sadly said as he took note of her smaller hands on his large ones, and pulled his hands away from her shoulders. He knew he was different and abnormal, that was something he could never change; he only dreamed of having a normal life with his beautiful Danielle above. To be able to see her in the sunlight, to walk down the strip of coffee shops and busy streets, to explore the technology stores and electronics that have always dazzled his mind. But sadly, he couldn't; he was forced to remain below the city, to avoid being seen by anyone who thought of him as well as his family as monsters, freaks of nature, mutants. It hurt him to see her trapped down her with him, and he would give her up just so she could have a normal life.

"I'm just a mutant who doesn't deserve love." Donnie said as his eyes were cast to the floor, sadly expecting her to snap out of her haze, her trance that he had placed upon her.

Danielle couldn't believe what she was hearing - he thought of himself as a freak and wanted her to be happy without him. Knowing that he was different from her didn't matter; what truly mattered to her was he was there for her when she needed him the most, even if she didn't know him at first. Her life had been turned around all because of him, and she never blamed him for any of it. Her eyes looked at him, studying his emotions that wrecked havoc on her brain; he was blaming himself for everything that happened to her, and none of it was his fault. If it weren't for him, she and her sisters would be dead. If it weren't for him, she and her sisters would have been captured by the Shredder or Hun. If it weren't for him, her heart wouldn't have opened up to those beautiful emotions she was feeling at the moment.

"Donatello, you're not just a mutant. You're smart, careful, tender, even a bit fanatic when it comes to electronics. If it wasn't for you and your brothers, we would've been dead or kidnapped by the Shredder or Hun. You took care of me when I was injured by the Foot in the subway; you took care of me when the Foot and the Purple Dragons were trying to get us. And . . . you took care of me just now when me and the other girls were stricken with that damn sickness. Donnie, you're no freak, no monster, no ugly demon. You're a special person, Donatello, and I wouldn't change that in my life. It doesn't matter to me if you're a giant mutant turtle, or if you were a human, you're still you." Danielle said as she looked at him, her hand reaching underneath to tilt his chin up to set their gazes together. She carefully wiped a stray tear that threatened to fall down his cheek, acknowledging the fact that appearances didn't matter to her at all.

"And besides, who would I be able to talk about the latest electronics that'll be coming out soon, and who'll be the one that I get to have that first cup of coffee with in the morning? I certainly can't have a good conversation like that with Eri or the other two girls like I do with you. You just get me, Donnie, and I get you. We just . . . mesh together, like two giant NASA computer towers . . . And I would rather be in love with a turtle who loves me and cherishes me than have no one at all." Danielle smiled and giggled as he adjusted his glasses that threatened to fall off his face.

For someone like him, Donatello felt that he didn't deserve such affection or any form of feeling from a human. He would've been used to them screaming in fear, calling him names such as 'freak', 'monster', 'mutant', but none of those fell from her lips. Only his name - his name only came from her beautiful, light pink lips. Full of promise, full of sunshine and laughter, full of . . . affection and love. He wanted nothing more than to hear his name from her lips, to see the brightness her eyes carried when she laughed and giggled around him, her smile to brighten and widen when she was around him in general. Dear encryptions, he had finally begun to understand, somewhat, the meaning of love and affection from another being. She was his, and whether she realized it yet or not, it didn't matter; Danielle was here, never ridiculing him, never disrespecting him in any way, shape or form. He brushed his thumb over her bottom lip, admiring the feel of her pillow like lips, the soft but slightly chapped skin causing a stir within his being. His eyes widened behind his tortoise shell glasses, hazel eyes boring into teal, his breath softly coming in pants.

"Danielle . . . I . . I ..." Donnie quietly said as he leaned closer to her, his eyes half closed as he cupped her cheek and pulled her closer.

Danielle looked at him, eyes half closed as she felt herself being pulled closer to him. Her slender arms went around his neck, minding of his technical equipment around his neck. Her body was on autopilot, sending signals of euphoria and slight pleasurable shivers into her veins and arteries; Danielle couldn't stop herself, even if she tried. Her breath began to come out in small pants, her breath ghosting in front of his face, the sweet smell of french vanilla mingled with the delicious smell of ground coffee. Their lips were so close, the sweet taste of them both mingling together and combining to create a sweet, succulent taste of coffee and french vanilla.

Her lips and his lips brushed up against one another, the smallest touch brought thousands of tiny vaults shooting through his spine, signals of pleasure and euphoria screaming through his veins. Donatello gasped softly, feeling the little jolts coursing through his body, the small electrical sparks that sent his neurological brain into overdrive mode, decompressing the locked file within his computer like brain; sexual stimuli, dopamine, testosterone and physiological responses began to build up inside his mind, hopefully trying to come up with some logical answer as to what he was feeling right now. But none of that mattered - she mattered, his Danielle and this sweet, innocent, prolonged moment that he had dreamed and fantasized about for eleven years. Danielle felt the same way; her lips pressed against his slightly large, chapped lips enticed little pulses of hot electricity throughout her body, sending those very jolts down to her loins. She had never felt any form of pleasure nor had any experience with it in person, but neither did Donatello; the fact that neither had felt this newly discovered pleasure and were willing to experience it with one another was unlike any form of scientific discovery they had ever encountered before. It made them both feel alive, and they wanted to feel that electrical current between them over and over again.

Danielle wrapped her arms around Donatello's neck, minding his headset as best as she could while pulling him in close to her. Her legs parted, allowing him to step in between them and be that much closer; one arm wrapped around her body, the other gripping the edge of the table, Donnie felt like he was in heaven as he tilted his head slightly at an angle to get a better taste of her sweet, succulent lips. They tentatively kissed again, this time feeling what a true lover's kiss felt like - warm heaven meeting electrical currents of neurological brain waves. A meeting of two computers talking silently to one another, a silent but comfortable and secret message that only passionate lovers could decode to each other- ; their bodies on autopilot, minds driven by pure, unadultered passion, both Danielle and Donatello finally got that first kiss. The kiss began to take over, tasting and feeling one another in a whole new way; Danielle gasped softly as her mouth opened wider, and Donnie took this as an opportunity to try a little something. His instincts kicked in and he carefully allowed his tingue to enter her mouth, and he groaned at the taste and feel of her tongue and mouth. She was delicious, a delicacy that was so rare that only he was allowed to dine on her exotic and earthy taste. Almost a caramel taste with a very small hint of coffee - black coffee, which was his preferable flavor for his coffee in the morning. their tongues shyly playing with each other, lightly teasing at first then unhindered and uncontrolled tasting in a tamed matter, grasping and holding onto each other for dear life. Donnie tightened the grip of his arm around her body, but still being careful not to crush any bones within her; his large fingers teasing a trail up her spine, leaving an invisible trail of warmth through the fabric of her t-shirt, shooting electric jolts and teasing passion in their wake.

Donatello was the first to break the kiss, gasping for air as he lightly laid his forehead against hers while pulling off his goggles and setting them beside her on the table. Both panted for air, shy but goofy smiles adorned their faces as they let the realization hit them like a bunch of bricks - they finally found what real love felt like. A true, passionate first kiss - one that was indescribable and unpredictable that no amount of science, computers or mathematical equations could calculate or dissect what this feeling was growing between them.

"Wow." Danielle whispered as she finally caught her breath and breathed normally for the first time in minutes. Even though she seemed content and calm on the outside, her heart hammered so hard against her rib cage that she felt the muscle would burst out of her.

"Yeah." Donnie said as he opened his eyes to stare into her glazed teal eyes, not caring what the repercussions were at this time and moment.

"So, um . . . d-d-did you like t-that?" Danielle stuttered as she began to straighten her hair as best as she could with her fingers, fidgeting in her spot before looking at Donnie, who just smiled and gazed at her.

Donatello said nothing as he leaned forward while cupping her cheek to give her a chaste kiss on the lips again, loving the feel of hers against his. The love that he felt for her was definitely solidified and confirmed as he knew that she loved him in return. There actually was hope for him; there was hope that you could love someone who was different than you, no matter the appearances nor the way they were brought up - he loved her, a beast had finally found and earned the love from his beauty. A rose that he would never bruise, never pluck the petals from for its beauty lit up the room - his Danielle was that rose, and he had learned to let the cold metal around his heart give way to let her in.

"Need you ask?" Donnie asked as he smiled at her while tenderly caressing her cheek, enjoying the feel of her soft skin quietly. Their moment of solitude and comfortable quiet was, unfortunately, interrupted and in a very noisily matter nonetheless.

"**DAMNIT, DUDE! Tell me I am the master cook and you won't get hurt!**" Erica yelled as Danielle jumped and wrapped her arms around Donatello, her eyes almost the size of saucer plates as the sounds from the kitchen echoed into the lab.

"**NEVER! I'm the better chef, dudette! I won't surrender!**" Michelangelo yelled back as Donatello held Danielle tight to his chest with eyes wide behind his glasses as he overheard the crashes and clatters going on in the kitchen area.

"Sounds like another kitchen food fight." Donnie said as he turned to Danielle, who had cheeks tinted pink from the close proximity between them, despite what transpired between them moments ago.

"Wanna go check it out?" Danielle asked as she was set down and smoothed out her shirt at the bottom to keep it from riding up her thighs.

"Eh, why not?" Donnie said as he shrugged his shoulders and led Dani out of the lab and into the kitchen while holding onto her hand in his, his smile never leaving his face.

XXXX

Vern crawled out of the kitchen and dashed into the dojo where April came with Leonardo and Lauren were exiting the dojo. The man looked like he saw a ghost, judging by the scared look on his face and the heavy panting he breathed through his lungs.

"Vern, what's the matter?" April asked as she looked worried at her coworker.

"They're - going - at - each - other -" Vern gasped each word out as he tried to breathe in a decent amount of air into his lungs.

"Who?" Lauren asked, dreading the answer that might come out.

"The - orange - turtle and - Eri -" Vern gasped the words while holding onto his chest, almost as if he were having a heart attack.

"Oh, not again. Come on, we better make sure they don't destroy the kitchen. Leonarodo groaned as he and Lauren made their way into the direction of the kitchen, Vern and April hot behind their trail.

XXXX

Michelangelo was covered in flour as he ducked from a flying pizza pan coming at him. He and Erica have been going at each other to see who was the better chef of their families for the last five minutes, and already, the kitchen looked like a battlefield with the food and other inanimate objects being flung and tossed at one another. Mikey didn't mean to start the fight, but it was too damn funny to see Eri have a little fit about who is the better chef. His little dudette was a little spitfire, and he was the fuel that added to the fire; the chaos that had ensued between them was the result of the food being flung and shot at. This was indeed an interesting game between the two ninjas.

"Come on, dudette. Just admit it that I'm the better pizza maker and we'll call it a night." Michelangelo said as he wiped the flour off of his face while dodging a carton of milk that was meant to hit his head. Eri was so angry at him for the fact that he might be better than her, but it was all for fun; he didn't mean to hurt her feelings, but it was in the heat of the moment, and he was the master of pranks and jokes. He might've taken it a little too far with her, and he had no idea how to fix it. Luckily, Vern had escaped the kitchen before the chaos became too much for him to handle, and now Mikey had no idea how to handle the war between him and Eri.

"Hell no, dude! I'm the better pizza maker! Now give up!" Erica yelled as she grabbed the opened container of applesauce from the refrigerator and tossed it at Mikey, who grabbed the pizza pan, and used it as a shield to protect himself from the applesauce.

"Come on, dudette. You gotta do better than that." Mikey chided as he grabbed a bag of grapes and hurled them at her, wanting to see what more she could do.

Eri grabbed a heavy bag of potatoes and threw them at Mikey, who bounced them off the pizza pan and hit the wall with a thud. Mikey saw a box of cereal, and tossed it at Eri from behind the turned up table, not taking into consideration that she was grabbing the Hawaiian pizza out of the hot oven. As Eri turned around, the box of cereal came at her, and she quickly kicked it away while still holding the tray with two pot holders. Unfortunately, her reflexes were just a tad slow for her to catch on, and like watching a scene in slow motion, a second box of cereal hit her in the head, and her hands let go of the hot pan. The pizza fell to the floor, the pan creating a thunderous clang as it collided with the concrete floor. Both Eri and Mikey stopped and looked at the pizza, not realizing that their dinner was ruined, and all because of their stupid little food fight.

"I'm sorry . . . I-I'm sorry." Eri began to stutter as shakily began to pick up the ruined pizza, not minding that it was extremely hot from the pan residing underneath it. She grabbed a piece of it, but only felt hot fire course through her fingers as she threw it down just as quickly while blowing on her now burnt fingers.

"ERICA! Are you okay?!" Mikey yelled, freaking out as he ran and jumped over to her, sinking to his knees to make sure she wasn't severely hurt. He grabbed her hand, and overlooked it to make sure that she wasn't too badly burned by the ruined pizza, which laid in between them in a hot, gooey mess of melted cheese and soiled pineapples.

Eri nodded her head quietly as little twin trails of tears ran down her flour caked cheeks, watching as Michelangelo inspect her hand and fingers for any signs of burns. His large green fingers ran over her skin, careful to make sure that he wouldn't damage her any further; Mikey felt sorry for her as well as himself, never meaning to get her hurt by their little game of food fighting.

"I'm sorry, Eri. I didn't mean to get you hurt, I just wanted to have a little fun, that's all. I'm so sorry, little dudette, I don't want you to hate me." Michelangelo apologized as he took her hand carefully in his and cupped it to his cheek while nuzzling it in affection and apology, but that wasn't what caught her in shock - was he purring? Or churring? Whatever it was, it made her even more shocked by him. Erica looked stunned as she watched him, her turtle dude, all sad, nuzzling her and silently asking for her forgiveness while giving her pleading puppy eyes. Eri smiled, despite her tears coming down her cheeks, and scooted herself closer to him, her smile not leaving her face. She took his face in both her hands while minding her one injured hand, and cupped his cheeks, sending little jolts of euphoria throughout his body. Her four caked skin, pieces of fruit and melted cheese stuck to the strands of her strawberry blonde hair, melted chocolate plastered over her shoulders and collarbone as well as parts of her cheeks, which Mikey wiped away with his thumb and licked it off clean.

"Mikey, I'm okay. Just a little sore, but I'm good. There's no reason to worry, dude, because I was worried that I might've hit you with the potatoes." Eri said as she smiled and wiped away the cheese away from his cheek, tossing it to the floor without a care as she stared into his baby blue eyes that almost glowed behind his orange mask.

Almost on instinct, Erica leaned up and let her hands go behind his head, tentative to reach for the knot that tied his mask around his eyes. He nodded mutely as she began to work at the knot of his mask, feeling the rough strands slowly give way from the knot. She loosened the strands behind his head, and slowly slid the material from his eyes and down to let the loose material hang around his neck. She looked in awe as she took in his appearance: his light green skin adorned freckles along his cheeks, which was a trait that attracted to her. His light blue eyes seemed to be brighter without the silly mask, but it was what made him who he was, and she wouldn't trade him for anything in the world.

"Mikey . . ." Eri whispered as she ran her fingers along his cheeks, smiling as she took him for who and what he was.

She felt a little braver as she leaned up on her knees, her heart beating loudly against her ribs like a tidal wave that demanded to be challenged by a surfer; she closed her honey eyes in hopes that she wouldn't be pushed away by her dude. Michelangelo wrapped a muscled arm around her back and pulled her closer to him, his shell tightening so bad that he felt he would explode from the inside. Erica pressed her lips to his and let herself melt into the warm embrace that Michelangelo offered her. He stilled beneath her lips, his mind turned to mush as he came to realize that Eri had accepted him, loved him for who he was. Mikey was happy - his chest ready to burst with joy and glee as he returned the kiss, holding Eri closer to his chest, not wanting to let this moment be ruined. The kiss was slow, almost a kiss of apology - Eri wasn't one to complain because she was happily accepting his apology.

Michelangelo hummed in his throat as he wrapped his other arm around her body, and pulling her as humanly close as possible while their kiss deepened. Erica wrapped her arms around his neck, letting her instincts take over for a change. He was happy, truly happy - always the bubbly one of the four brothers, Mikey always felt that he would someday find that special someone who would accept him for who and what he was, and not ridicule him or make fun of him for whatever reason. He knew the world could be a cruel world, but he was nonetheless happy; his little dudette was happy with him, not caring that he was a mutant turtle who lived a very sheltered life, despite the items he and his brothers have collected from the surface world for years. Their moment, although was an eternity to the two of them, was a few seconds and interrupted by a loud, booming voice that echoed throughout the kitchen.

"MIKEY! What did you do to the kitchen?!" Leonardo yelled as he stood there with Lauren, April, Vern and Donatello, who had Danielle stand next to him while surveying the damage around the kitchen.

"Um, we had a little food fight." Eri said sheepishly as she untangled herself from Michelangelo's arms and ran her hand through her flour caked hair.

"A little? It looked like Hiroshima exploded in here." April said as she looked at the amount of food that was spoiled and trashed throughout the kitchen.

"And we accidentally ruined dinner in the process." Mikey pitched in, smiling as if everything was okay.

"Well then, who wants take out?" Lauren said as she looked at everyone else then back at Leo, who sighed heavily and let his head sink heavily into his hand, not believing what had happened within a course of a few minutes.

XXXX

**Author's Note: Hi guys! I'm sorry that this chapter isn't as long as the other ones, but due to me being sick within the last week as well as working so much, I haven't had much time to put my story ahead :( I figured that it's been a while since I've updated this baby, so I feel ashamed that I've neglected my baby. ****But I figured I would try to get back into the swing of things hopefully soon. Reviews are welcomed and I'll see you in the next chapter :) **


	27. Invasion Of The Lair!

**Author's Note: Hello, everybody! Welcome back to TMNT 2k14! I'm so glad to be back on here, between being sick and work knocking me down, I've neglected my story on here. That, and writing two other stories on top of that, plus the holidays, it's crazy, but I'll manage somehow. So let's get back into the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of TMNT. All rights go to their creators. I only own my OCs.**

XXXX

Lauren swept the floor of the kitchen, precision and quickness in her actions as she tried to help clean the kitchen as quick as possible. She couldn't believe it - well, actually, it didn't really shock her as badly as Leonardo when she saw the mess in the kitchen. Erica was notorious for creating large messes in very small places at an alarming rate, but that was something she had gotten used to over the years. She swept the remaining pieces of ruined fruits and vegetables into a small dust pan, and picked it up while throwing the mess into a garbage bag. There - it was finally clean again, and hopefully the boys' sensei and Shimizu wouldn't be mad about what had transpired.

"There, that takes care of that." Lauren said to herself as she dusted her hands on her pants, and pulled her hair out of the ponytail she had up while she helped with the cleaning.

"I apologize for Mikey's behavior earlier. He usually knows his manners and tends to be good for most of the time." Leonardo apologized as he finished wiping the kitchen sink down from the flour that caked on almost every surface in the whole room.

"There's no need to apologize, Leo. I'm used to it; Eri does it a lot at home whenever she cooks." Lauren brushed it off as she and Leo walked out of the kitchen and over to the couch, where Michelangelo, Raphael and Donatello were sitting on the couch with each of her sisters on their laps.

Lauren looked at them confused, taking in each of the brothers appropriate size difference, and wondered to herself how they managed to all fit onto the pizza couch without anyone being uncomfortable and squished together. Luckily, there was enough room for Leonardo and Lauren to fit onto the end of the couch next to Raphael, who held Rachel on his lap as she wrapped herself up in his red comforter. She looked over to Danielle, who had her head tucked underneath Donatello's chin and wrapped in a purple blanket while watching whatever was on the television. Michelangelo - well, he was half on the couch, with one leg up over the arm rest of the couch, a bowl of popcorn under one arm while holding onto Erica, who was cradled to his chest and munching out of the bowl of popcorn he provided for them. She took note that her youngest sister was also wrapped up in a bright orange comforter, and both ninja couples had their eyes glued to the television, whatever it was they were watching, it must have been entertaining to them that they didn't notice Leo and Lauren enter the den.

"What are you guys watching?" Leonardo asked as he looked at the TV then at Raph, who glowered at the offending brightness that the screen gave off. He actually wanted to sleep for a change, and not be interrupted.

"Some science story that genius one and two wanted to watch." Raphael grumbled as he had an arm laid on the back of the couch, and the other wrapped around Rachel so she wouldn't fall off his lap.

"Where are April and Vern?" Lauren asked as she looked around, wondering what happened to the reporting duo.

"They're in the meditation room with Master Splinter, Shimizu sensei and Madame Blossom. They're having a talk about them knowing the guys, and keeping them a secret." Danielle said quietly as she leaned closer to Donnie, getting more comfortable in his embrace and settling down while keeping her gaze on the television.

"Hopefully they don't spill their guts to the world about you guys. I already threatened Vern, and I won't hesitate to do it again." Rachel muffled as she cuddled herself underneath the comforter and drew herself closer to Raph, who wrapped his arm slightly tighter around her.

"Nobody is going to do anything, alright? We'll just wait and see what Master Splinter says about the situation." Leonardo said as he looked at Lauren, who rubbed her eyes with one hand, trying to evade sleep at all costs.

"Nap time?" Eri asked as she looked at her oldest sister, taking the empty bowl out of Mikey's grasp and settling herself closer to him.

Lauren nodded as everyone shifted on the couch so they could get comfortable. Leonardo walked over to the television, pressing the button to shut it off, and walked over to the couch, where Raphael scooted over so he could make room for this brother. Lauren didn't want to sleep yet, she felt that there was much to be done around the lair, and she felt a little uncomfortable being so close to Leo with others around them. She wanted to have her own private time with him, where there were no eyes to watch over them. But that was a little fantasy that she had of her own, and she began to walk towards the dojo to hopefully get her mind off of things before going to bed. That is, until she felt a large hand wrap around her forearm, stopping her in her tracks and looking at Leonardo, who held her gaze with those beautiful blue eyes behind that mask.

"Where are you going?" Leo asked as he took in her appearance.

"The dojo - feel too wound up to sleep right now." Lauren said as she tried to dismiss his question, not wanting to fall asleep so quickly.

"You're tired, why don't you take a nap like the rest of us?" Leo asked again as he gently pulled her closer to him, his other arm grabbing a blue quilt from the back of the couch and pulling it down to his lap.

Lauren stay silent as she looked at her younger sisters, who were already dozed off from the activities they had endured today. He did have a point, her bod was yelling at her to get some rest, but her mind was going over too many things at once, keeping her confused but alert at the same time. It wasn't that she didn't want to fall asleep for a while, but it was who she was going to be with. Leonardo - who silently waited for her response, and she wasn't going to keep him waiting any longer. He gently pulled her closer to him, her legs hitting the couch and one of his, watching as her breath caught in her throat by the small action. She peered over to the other three couples, who were still sound asleep, not wanting to disturb them by being so loud. She glanced back at Leo, and slowly climbed up on him, minding her tight surroundings as she settled down in his lap, her head leaning on his shoulder while she tried to find a comfortable position to rest. Leo pulled her as close as he could without disturbing his brothers, and gently wrapped the quilt around the two of them, careful of his movements.

Lauren felt a sigh come up from her chest as she settled herself more, her eyes beginning to shut and her body slowly adjusting to the calmness that Leo's body was permeating. She vaguely felt him kiss the crown of her head as she drifted off into a soundless slumber, finally able to get that nap that her sisters were taking as well.

XXXX

Karai stood by as she looked over the computers, wondering where the hell those damn turtles were hiding. She had every Foot soldier as well as every Purple Dragon scout the entire metropolitan area within a ten mile radius, going through every abandon building and street to find these retched freaks. This was absurd - there was little to no chance that they could've escaped the blast from the explosion at the school a few days ago. Her master, her father, was recovering quite nicely, although she had no interest in dealing with Hun, who was now working for the Shredder once more. She despised the man, but not as much as Eric Sacks, who kept a lock and key about his operations that didn't involve the Foot clan. Karai knew that she shouldn't have trusted him when they first met, and her instincts were never wrong. But, considering what the businessman had done over the last seventeen years, she had began to trust him even more. But now that the Purple Dragons were working with the Foot, her nerves were on pinpoint, never second guessing and always alert for the slimy dogs that were beneath them.

"Any luck, my dear?" Eric's voice snapped her out of her reverie as she turned around to see the businessman, who stood there looking so suave and casual that it made her blood boil within her even more.

"Why is it any of your concern?" Karai asked as she kept her cold gaze on the man, wondering why he was here in the first place.

"Well, seeing as how you're using my company's equipment, I say it is my concern." Eric huffed as he stepped closer to the female soldier, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Why did you bring that traitor back into the Foot clan? He is a dog, a devious snake that slithers around behind the back of our master, and not worthy of the Foot clan." Karai asked as she glared at Eric, who smirked at her question, which made her even more upset about the situation.

"Unlike you, Karai, I know for a fact that Hun will be able to deliver those girls to me once we have our information." Eric chided as he brushed a stray strand of her black hair from her face, which made her upset even further.

How dare he ridicule her, an elite member of the Foot clan, who took her title and honor seriously?! She raised her hand, ready to strike him hard across the face, but she wasn't aware of his quick reflexes. He caught her wrist before her fingers laid contact with his cheek, a smug smirk on his face. Eric would admit that she was good, but he too, had also trained with his master for years, much longer than Karai had in her lifetime. But he would let the little tramp get away with her action - for now.

"And unlike you, Karai, I know who is worthy to be in the Foot clan, and who should be at the bottom of the food chain." Eric whispered as he let go of her wrist harshly, and stared into her eyes, not wanting the female soldier to get the better of him.

Their moment was interrupted when they heard the door open, and turned to see Hun enter the room before kneeling down on one knee to bow to Eric Sacks, who nodded in his direction and waited for the report of his protege. Hopefully, there would be some good news.

"My men have scouted the city, and have come across something very interesting, my master." Hun began to report as he looked up at his master, wondering how he'll take the news.

"Go on." Eric urged from the large man, wondering what it was that got his curiosity so piqued right now.

"They have found a manhole that had been abandoned for years, all dried up and cleaned up. They also have discovered a secret camera hidden in one of the tunnels, and from my reports that my men have given me, the location of the turtles has finally been found." Hun reported as he smirked when he looked to see the smile on his master's face.

"Excellent! Karai, go tell Master Shredder to rally our forces as well as the Purple Dragons. I believe it is time to collect our prizes this time." Eric ordered Karai, who glared at the two men before leaving the electric room to give the news to her master.

"Do you believe we should trust her? I fear she will betray us." Hun asked Eric, who turned to look at the large man.

"No, which is why I will see to it that you deliver the prizes to me, personally." Eric said as Hun stood up and bowed to him.

"As you request, my master." Hun said as he turned to take his leave, cracking his knuckles before rallying his men up for the task.

XXXX

April and Vern were in the meditation room with Madame Blossom, who was also trying to convince the two reporters to not say a word about the turtles or the girls. April didn't know what to say - she had listened to the story from both Master Splinter and Shimizu sensei about how the turtles were born to be who they are now, how they met and how everything came into play. She was stunned, speechless, and not sure how to react to this. Both her and Vern looked at each other, and knew that this was one twisted story, but it was one that they needed to hear.

"You see, Ms. O'Neil and Mr. Fenwick, these turtles are the reason why my nieces are alive, and I would hate for them to be the cause of a nationwide science project hunt." Madame Blossom said as she tried to plead with them to not say anything about their secret.

"I - I don't know what to say. They've known each other all this time, and have been the reason that the Foot clan are after the girls." Vern said, wondering how to wrap his mind around this one.

"No, my dear boy. My sons are the reason the girls are still alive. We have been dealing with the Foot clan for years, but it is unfortunate that they also have another enemy to deal with as well. These, Purple Dragons as they call themselves, are also another problem that my sons will have to face as well. But without them, those beautiful girls would be either dead or kidnapped by the Shredder. And I do not want my sons to feel heartbreak at this time." Splinter said wisely as he eyed the young man in front of him carefully.

"And my daughters have been trained in the art of ninja, although not as much as the turtles of course. But if you please, Ms. O'Neil, I would rather not have them be discovered by prying eyes that don't need to know of their existence." Shimizu said as she pleaded the young reporter to not say anything about her daughters knowing the turtles.

April was at a crossroad - on one hand, she had the greatest story ever in the palm of her hand, waiting to come to light for the world to know about these turtle brothers. Her reputation would go skyhigh, she would be the greatest reporter Channel 6 News ever hired, and she would never be ridiculed for her story. On the other hand, there was the risk of losing her friendship with the girls, who she cherished like little sisters to her. She realized how far they were willing to go to keep the boys a secret from the world above, taking into account her cheek that Lauren slapped her. It still stung, reminding her that they would fight to keep everything down here a secret. Would she risk it all just for that one story, or would she be able to listen to her mind, and let this go down the drain to keep her friends? She knew her reputation would plummet if she didn't get this story out, but she would also lose her best friends, and that was something she wasn't going to lose ever.

"You have my word. Your secret is safe with us." April said as she watched both Shimizu and Splinter sigh in relief, knowing that their secret would be kept that way.

Vern couldn't believe what he was hearing, April was giving up on a story?! That wasn't like her, and he knew it too. He had worked with her for only a yea, and he knew how tenacious she was at getting her story in. She was just going to give this up, knowing that all the evidence was right in front of them, and she was just letting it walk away? What the hell is she thinking?

"You're just giving up on this, O'Neil?" Vern asked, wondering what she was thinking in that head of hers.

"Vern, I can't go through with this story, knowing that we would lose our friends in the process." April answered, giving him a sad look to know that she was really serious about this.

"But - you - I mean, you've been chasing this story for months, and you're going to let it go down the sewer drain?! No offense, Splinter, but this is nuts for me to hear from her." Vern said as he looked at Splinter in apology then back at April.

"Vern, would you rather have a good reputation and lose the girls in the process? Or would you rather keep this a secret and keep the girls as our friends? I can't lose them, not this way, and I won't lose them." April asked him, which made him think for a moment on this, considering his options before he said anything.

"Fine, I wont say anything either." Vern said as he looked at April, who smiled and hugged him tightly, knowing that he made the right decision.

"Good, now that we have that out of the way. Blossom, would you escort them back home?" Shimizu said as she watched Madame Blossom bow before her and Splinter before encouraging the reporting duo to follow her out of the lair.

April and Vern stood up, and bowed before the two rodent teachers, giving their respects to them and knowing that they could be trusted. As they were starting to walk out of the meditation room, April knew she had forgotten to do something.

"Wait! Can we at least say goodbye to the girls?" April asked as Madame Blossom nodded while allowing the two adults to walk into the den.

XXXX

April and Vern arrived in the den, but stopped in their tracks as they took in the sight that made them so quiet they could hardly move. On the couch, in the quietness of the den, all four turtles were sound asleep while holding onto their girls, almost crunched together on the small pizza couch. April smiled as she took in the sight before, wishing she had her camera on her, but refused to take a picture of the couples, fearing she would wake them in the process.

"Well, I'll be damned." Vern muttered to himself as he took in the sight of all eight of them sound asleep.

April quietly approached the couch, and looked at all four couples, smiling as she took them in. Michelangelo was on his shell snoring loudly, one leg bent on the cushions of the couch, and the other bent on the side of the couch, his foot connected with the floor. One arm laid limp by his side and the other wrapped around Eri, who laid on his plastron and her head on his chest, over his heart and lightly snoring with the orange comforter wrapped tightly around her. Donatello was slouched slightly on the couch, cradling Danielle to his chest, who curled into his body while clutching onto their glasses in her hands and had the purple blanket wrapped around the two of them. Raphael leaned to the side of Donnie, his head leaning onto the back of the couch while snoring slightly. His arm around Rachel, who laid her head in the crook of his neck and his other hand was in her hair, signifying that he was playing with the strands of her hair before falling asleep.

When she looked at Leonardo, who held Lauren carefully to his body, she felt her smile go down into a small frown. She felt bad for having things the way they were earlier between them, and she wanted to rectify that with an apology. Lauren was mostly cradled to Leonardo, with the exception of her legs half dangling off of the arm of the couch, and her head leaned back slightly on his large shoulder. April walked over to the couple as carefully and quietly as she could, and planted a light kiss to her temple, knowing that she was sorry for what happened earlier tonight. She stepped back and watched as Lauren cuddled herself closer to Leo, who wrapped his arm tighter around her frame and settled back down in their sleep.

"Come on, O'Neil, let's leave them be so they can catch up on sleep." Vern whispered as he gently tugged her away from the couch, and backed up to Madame Blossom, who waited patiently for them to make their exit with her.

XXXX

Karai sat in the passenger's seat of the moving Hummer as it sped down the streets, avoiding as much traffic as possible. She was excited, her blood pumping fast throughout her veins. She was going to be able to redeem herself against those freaks, let alone Lauren, who she detested with a hatred that rivaled jealousy. She wanted nothing more than to terminate her nemesis, her obstacle that seemed to obscure her from her main objectives. But that no longer mattered; the Foot clan and the Purple Dragons had finally been able to find the location of those turtles and the girls. Victory was calling to her at last.

"We're 100 meters away from the targets, and closing in." A soldier's voice rang through the intercom as she began to grab her gear, ready to fight once again.

"Not this time, I'm afraid. Your orders are to remain in the vehicle until we've secured the targets." Hun said as he laid a large on her petite shoulder, stopping her from exiting the vehicle.

"What?!" Karai bellowed as she whipped around to face the large blonde haired man.

"As per orders from the Shredder himself." Hun said as he exited the vehicle, leaving a fuming female soldier alone and going over her plans in her mind.

As Hun walked away from the vehicle, he smirked as he watched his men pull off the manhole cover and begin their descent down into the sewer system.

"We've found the main entrance, sir." A Purple Dragon said to him as he saluted to his boss, waiting for his next orders.

"Good. Be ready to take on the next phase." Hun ordered as his men fell down into the sewer, knowing that his targets were awaiting for their next move.

XXXX

Splinter and Shimizu stood in front of the couch, watching as their children were slowly starting to come from their nap. It was nice to see that everything was working out between them, knowing that they were all meant to be with one another. To the two masters, it only felt like yesterday that they were small children that could easily sleep on the couch and not be cramped together. Now, looking at them, the two elders couldn't help but quietly chuckle to themselves at the sight before them.

"Kids, they'll never change." Splinter quietly said as he watched Raphael wake and slowly resume running his large fingers lightly through Rachel's tendrils of silky hair.

"It only seemed like yesterday they were small, and would be able to fit more comfortably on the couch, taking little naps here and there. Now, heh, they are lucky to even fit on there in the first place." Shimizu chuckled as she watched her daughters slowly wake from their nap.

Rachel stirred slowly as she felt fingers run through her hair, loving the feel of rough, calloused skin threading through her strands. She pulled away from the thick, hard warmth she fell asleep on and looked up to see Raphael, who looked down at her with a small glint in his eyes before laying a small kiss to her forehead. She hummed to herself as she stretched her arms up in the air, escaping the warmth that the comforter offered her.

Michelangelo yawned loudly as he stretched and slightly started to push up from the couch, only forgetting that Erica was taking up space on his chest, groaning as she also got up, sitting on top of his waist while stretching and scratching her head lightly, not realizing how bad her hair was. Mikey scratched his neck, and looked up, giggling at her before she looked down at him, wondering why he was laughing at her.

"Dudette, you have massive bedhead." Mikey laughed as Eri ran her fingers through her hair, hoping to keep the strands down from their mess of hair.

Donatello slowly stirred, looking down at Danielle, who cuddled into him more while gently holding onto his glasses. She woke up, and looked around her, forgetting that she didn't have her glasses on. She started to panic slightly, until Donnie caressed her head and took her glasses from her enclosed hand while gently putting them on her face as well as putting his own glasses on his, blinking a few times to adjust to his surroundings. He nuzzled at her while she giggled and started to get up, stretching her body out of the kinks it was in for the last few hours it remained in.

Leonardo woke up, looking at his brothers who were all up and ready before looking down at Lauren. Her head cradled gently on his shoulder, her soft breath ghosting his neck, he slowly nuzzled her cheek, coaxing her to wake from her slumber. Her hair fell out of her ponytail, and cascaded down her shoulders, a river of black and hints of blue reminding him how beautiful and graceful she really was to be around. She awoke, and looked around her surroundings before looking at Leonardo, who gazed down at her affectionately. She untangled herself from the blanket as well as from Leonardo before getting the kinks out of her body as well.

"Mmm, what time is it?" Lauren asked as she looked at her younger sisters, who were also trying to get out of their nap phase.

"Time to put on some clean clothes, that's what." Rachel grumbled as she pulled herself away from Raph and started her way to the meditation room, where their clothes were drying from being washed.

"Sounds good to me, and maybe something to eat as well." Erica murmured as she too followed Rachel to the room for her clothes as well.

Lauren and Danielle looked at each other before following the other two girls, excited to be into their normal clothes once more.

XXXX

The Foot soldiers and the Purple Dragons were closing in on the lair, knowing full well that the fight was ready to commence and were prepared this time to take them out.

"Take them alive!" A Foot soldier yelled as their prepared their weapons and began to mend together an explosive of some sort.

"Eyes on the prize, Dragons! We know what we're getting in the end!" A Dragon said as he ordered his men to be ready for the fight as well.

"Do not take these freaks lightly, men. They are skilled warriors, and are not meant to be given any form of mercy." Hun reminded everyone as they prepped up for the fight, not realizing that they tripped a wire in the process.

XXXX

Alarms blared throughout the lair, making everyone go into panic mode as to what had caused the alarms to go off in the first place. Leonardo and Donatello scrambled to the lab where all the security footage was showing men in thuggish and black uniforms bombarding throughout the tunnels that lead to their home.

"Oh no! No, no, no, no, no! Perimeter breached! We got a breach in the tunnels!" Donatello yelled as he typed as fast as his fingers would allow him to, punching in codes and phrases as to what was being fed through their live feed of the tunnels.

The girls as well as the other two turtle brothers came to the monitors, noting the amount of men that scrambled in throughout the footage.

"DAMN! They've double their numbers!" Rachel growled as she and Raphael went to grab their weapons.

"Where are they coming from?" Leo asked Donnie, who continued to type furiously into the keypads.

"Weapons wall." Donnie said as everyone began to scramble to their weapons and prepare for an invasion.

"Mikey, you take Eri over to the meditation room. Raph, you and Rachel go to the fan room. Donnie, Lauren, Dani, you're with me." Leo ordered as everyone scrambled to do what must be done.

XXXX

The Foot and Purple Dragons enclosed on a wall that blocked them from their prizes, planting a bomb into the wall, and ready to go off. They set the bomb, and the timer began to go with ten seconds on the clock.

"Going on ten!" A soldier yelled as he signaled for everyone to be ready.

Hun could almost taste the sweetness of this attack, it was too perfect. He was going to redeem himself at last, and prove that he was worthy to be Sacks' protege.

XXXX

Splinter ran over to the weapons wall, his ears straight and straining to hear through the thick concrete. He and Shimizu heard a ticking sound, and knew that someone had found them and were ready to bombard the lair.

"No! GET BACK!" Splinter yelled, letting everyone know that there was a bomb to go off.

XXXX

3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .

XXXX

Leonardo and Donatello ran first, but couldn't stop themselves as the bomb went off.

_**BOMB!**_

XXXX

**Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Hahaha! I'm back, dudes and dudettes! I have to get your attention back so I thought I put this scene in here! Now we're getting to where we should be in the story! I'll see you in the next chapter, and reviews are always welcomed! :D**


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